TYSONS IN 

RUIT GROWING 

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Book. 



333 b^ 



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COPYRIGHT DEPOSIT 



LESSONS 



m 



COMMERCIAL FRUIT GROWING 



A TEXT-BOOK FOR BEGINNERS 



Sr&OFF 

Professor of Horticulture in the University op Wisconsin. 
(Author of "Principles of Plant Culture.") 



Madison, Wis. 

PUBLISHED BY THE UNIVERSITY CO-OPERATIVE ASSOCIATION 

1903. 



THF L18RASY ©F 

OCNGSESS, 
Two Co< iM Receive* 

MAR» V t902 

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Copyright 1903 

BY 

E. S. GOFF. 



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STATE JOURNAL PRINTING COMPANY, 

Printers and Stereotypers, 

madison, wis. 



PREFACE 

This book, like its predecessor, "Principles of Plant Cul- 
ture," has grown up in the class rooni. As in that work, 
the text is briefly stated, with the expectation that the in- 
structor will amplify it by questions aiidby additional facts 
from his experience, observati'on or reading. This book 
is intended as a supplement to " Principles of Plant Cul- 
ture," hence information given in that book is not repeated 
here, as a rule. 

While good horticultural books are much more numer- 
ous than they were a quarter of a century ago, the author 
has been able to find no single book that presents concisely 
the information he desires to give his students in fruit 
growing. This is his apology for offering another book. 
It is hoped that the topical arrangement of the subject 
matter, the cross-references, the summaries following the 
chapters or sections, and the suggestions for laboratory 
work will commend this book to other instructors, 

A list of books is appended at the end (page 212), for the 
benefit of those who desire to pursue the subjects further. 

Madison, Wis., Feb. 1, 1902. E. S. GOFF. 



ACKNOWLEDGMENTS 



Figures 21, 23, 26, 30, 31, 32, 84, 35, 36, 37. 38 and 39 
are from " The Priming Book," by Prof. L. H. Bailey, and 
are used by permission of Prof. Bailey, and his publishers, 
The Macmillan Company, of New York. Some of these 
were redrawn and slightly modified. 

Figures 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 16, 22, 24, 27, 40, 41, 45, 
47 and 48 are from " Insects Injurious to Fruits," by Prof. 
William Saunders, F. R. S. C, and were purchased from 
the publishers of that book, the J. B. Lippincott Compa?iy, 
of Philadelphia, Pa. 

Figures 19, 25, 33, 42 and 43 were purchased from the 
Wells, Higman Company, of Saint Joseph, Mich. 

Figure 15 is used by permission of Dr. L. 0. Howard, of 
the U. S. Department of Agriculture. 

Figure 18 is from a plate loaned by the Virginia Agri- 
cultural Experiment Station, through Prof. Wm. B. Al- 
wood. 

The books mentioned on page 212, and a few others, have 
been freely consulted in the preparation of this work, and 
the assistance thus gained is gratefully acknowledged. 



TABLE OF CONTENTS 



Pages. 

Chapter I. — General Considerations 1-19 

Chapter II.— Tree-fruit or Orchard Culture 20-125 

Section 1 — General Statements 20-38 

Section 2 — The Pome Fruits 39-75 

A — TheApple 40-67 

B — The Pear 67-73 

C — The Quince 73-75 

Section 3 — The Stone or Drupe Fruits 75-101 

A — The Plum 77-87 

B — The Cherry 87-90 

C — ThePeach 90-97 

D — The Apricot 97-98 

Section 4 — The Citrous Fruits 101-109 

A — The Orange 102-105 

B — The Lemon , 106 

C — The Lime 107 

D — The Pomelo 107 

Section 5 — The Nuts 109-125 

A — The Pecan 110-114 

B — The Chestnut 114-116 

C — The Walnut 117-119 

D — The Almond 119-121 

E — The Hazel 121-123 

Chapter III.— The Grape 126-147 

Chapter IV.— The Small Fruits 148-184 

Section 1 — The Bramble Fruits, 150-159 

Section 2 — The Groselles 159-165 

A — The Currants 160-164 

B — The Gooseberries 164-165 



VI TABLE OF CONTENTS 

Pages. 

Sections — The Strawberry 1(35-172 

Section 4 — The Cranberry 175-180 

Section 5 — The Miscellaneous Small Fruits 180-183 

Chapter V. — The Storage and Preservation of Fruit 185-203 

Section 1 — The Storage of Fruit 185-188 

Section 2 — The Preservation of Fruits 188-201 

Chapter VI. — Business Management of the Fruit Planta- 
tion 204-212 

Section 1 — The Marketing of Fruit 205-207 

Section 2 — The Employment and Management of 

Labor 208-209 

Section 3 — The Procuring of Supplies 209-210 



LESSONS IN COMMERCIAL FRUIT GROWING 



CHAPTER I 

GENERAL CONSIDERATIONS 

1. Definitions. Thfe word fruity as used in American 
horticulture, may be defined as the edible part of a peren- 
nial plant that is closely connacted in its development with 
the flower. This definition includes the nuts, which for 
convenience, are now classed with fruits in matters relat- 
ing to culture. Pomology ox fruit growing is the art or 
science of raising fruit. Commercial fruit groiving i^ the 
raising of fruit primarily as a means of earning a liveli- 
hood. It includes the raising, the handling and the mar- 
keting of fruits, especially in large quantities. 

2. Present condition of fruit growing:. Fruit growing 
in the United States and Canada is now passing through 
a transition period, especially as regards the tree fruits. 
The old-time farm orchard is slowly 'disappearing. The 
production of fruit, however, is rapidly increasing, but the 
increase is due mainly to the establishment of large com- 
mercial orchards. Fruit growing, in other words, is fol- 
lowing in the line of other industries and is being more 
and more conducted on a large scale, and often with com- 
bined capital and according to strict business methods. As 
the result, fruit is being produced more cheaply, and of 
better quality than formerly. 

3. The education required. Commercial fruit grow- 
ing requires education along two distinct lines. 1st. The 



2 Lessons in Fruit Growing. 

person wlio grows the fruit needs a knowledge of plant life 
and plant development, especially in relation to the par- 
ticular plants he desires to grow; and 2d, the person who 
attends to the business matters connected with the grow- 
ing and disposition of the fruit needs a knowledge of busi- 
ness methods in general, and especially as related to the 
handling and marketing of fruit. A knowledge of vege- 
table physiology, of chemistry and physics as applied to 
agriculture, and of controlling the parasitic enemies of fruit 
plants forms the basis for the first kind of education; a 
knowledge of commercial methods, including bookkeeping, 
and of packing and shipping fruit forms the basis for the 
second. 

Some knowledge of the manufacture of fruits into sec- 
ondary products is also important. 

Success in commercial fruit growing will depend much 
upon the extent to which these two kinds of education are 
combined. The same individual need not possess educa- 
tion in both lines; indeed both are often in demand at the 
same time and in different places. If an extensive fruit 
business is undertaken, it will be better to have one person 
make a specialty of each of these departments. 

The foundation for the first kind of knowledge is best 
attained in an agricultural college; that for the second in 
a business college. Both should be supplemented by 
practical work for a time in a successful commercial fruit 
business. 

4. The outlook for commercial fruit growing:. Both the 
production and the consumption of fruit are increasing in 
most civilized countries. The methods of production, stor- 
age, distribution, manufacture and preserving of fruits tend 
to improve and to become cheaper. The number of persons 



General Considerations. 3 

who are able to appreciate and to pay for strictly choice 
fruit is increasing. The opportunities for business success 
in fruit growing are perhaps as numerous and as favorable 
as in any other productive industry. There is plenty of 
"room at the top." It is doubtful, however, if one branch 
•of productive industry will prove permanently more re- 
munerative than another. Aside from personal aptitudes 
and tastes, which should never be ignored, an occupation 
is desirable in proportion as it promotes the broadest de- 
velopment of those who follow it. Yiewed from this stand- 
point, few occupations are more desirable than commercial 
fruit growing. 

5. The kinds of fruit grown will depend somewhat upon 
whether a location is to be selected, or ground already 
•owned is to be used. In the first case the market and the 
personal tastes of the grower should be considered, and the 
location selected that is best adapted to the chosen fruit or 
fruits. In the second case the adaptability of the different 
fruits to the soil and climate of the tract to be used, 
should first be considered. As a rule the fruit will pay 
best that is best adapted to the soil and climate. It is 
generally wiser to grow two or more fruits than to depend 
upon one, as the chances of crop failure are thereby reduced. 

6, The choice of a location. This will necessarily de- 
pend much upon the particular fruit or fruits it is desired 
to produce. The location chosen, however, should be gov- 
erned by two principal considerations, viz.: 1st, the favor- 
ableness of the soil and climate to the production of the 
fruit or fruits it is desired to produce, and 2d, the oppor- 
tunities for marketing the fruits. 

1st. The conditions of soil and climate required differ 
greatly with different fruits, and will be treated specifically 



4 Lessons in Fruit Growing. 

in the proper places, but certain general requirements may 
be mentioned here. 

a. Length of season. The warm season should be suffi- 
ciently long to properly mature the fruit or fruits it is de- 
sired to grow. The quality of fruits depends more or less 
upon their receiving a given amount of solar heat during 
the growth period. Thus the grape only attains its high- 
est quality when grown in a warm climate. Conversely, 
the season may be too long and warm for the highest 
quality and best keeping of a given fruit, as is true of the 
apple in southern United States. 

b. Freedom from damaging frosts. This depends more 
upon local environment than upon latitude. Altitude, as- 
pect and proximity to bodies of water should receive the 
most careful attention in locating the fruit plantation.* 

c. Shelter from j^revailing winds. A location that is 
sheltered from the prevailing winds by natural barriers, as 
elevations of ground or forests, is preferable to one not 
thus sheltered, especially for the tree fruits. In otherwise 
favorable locations, damage from winds may be in part 
averted by growing a wind-break on the side of the plan- 
tation toward the prevailing winds. (10.) t 

2d. The market conditions. The market, to the com- 
mercial fruit grower, means the party or parties that buy 
the fruits, and has no necessary relation to the place where 
the fruits are consumed. Sometimes the buyer goes to the 
farm and buys the fruit, even before it is mature; at other 
times the fruit is shipped a long distance — perhaps across 
the ocean — before it finds a buyer. The transaction may 

* The relation of these conditions to cLamaging frosts is considered in detail 
in "Principles of Plant Culture." 

t A number in parenthesis in the text refers to another paragraph that gives 
further information on the same subject. 



General Consideraiions. 5 

be equally profitable in both cases. The market is a less 
definite and a less stable factor than the conditions of soil 
and climate. A few principles, however, can be laid down. 

a. Transportation facilities. To avoid carriage by wagon 
and transfer after shipment, fruits for the commercial 
business are preferably grown near some through line of 
transportation. Two such lines are preferable to one, as 
competition will thus tend to lower shipping rates, and 
there will then be greater security in case of strikes or other 
temporary obstructions to commerce. As a rule, the larger 
the number of transportation companies within reach of 
the fruit plantation, the better. 

b. Shipping quality. The more delicate and perishable 
the fruit produced, the more important is it that it should 
be grown near a large center of population. The straw- 
berry cannot be shipped long distances and be delivered to 
the consumer at its highest quality, though winter apples 
may be shipped across the ocean without deterioration. 

Locations may sometimes be found where special fruits 
may be grown outside of their normal climatic belt. Thus 
peaches are produced considerably farther north on the 
east side of Lake Michigan than is possible in the Eastern 
States, and oranges may be grown in the thermal belts of 
the Sierra Nevada mountains as far north as Philadelphia. 
Fruits that can be well grown outside of their normal belt 
are usually more profitable than those grown in it, because 
local competition is thus restricted. 

A market may sometimes be developed where it does not 

'already exist. Since fruits do not usually rank among the 

necessaries of life, their consumption depends largely upon 

their cheapness and quality. In order to develop a market 

for fruit we must supply the products of fine quality and in 



6 Lessons in Fruit Growing. 

an attractive form. As their value becomes known, the 
demand for them will increase. 

The most profitable markets for fruits are n9t always 
the largest towns and cities, since these, drawing their sup- 
ply from extensive areas, are generally better stocked than 
smaller communities. 

3d. Other conditions. Aside from soil, climate and mar- 
ket, other conditions should be considered in locating the 
fruit plantation: 

a. The ability to procure the desired manual labor at a 
reasonable cost. This need not necessarily be skilled labor, 
as few of the operations of fruit culture are difficult to 
learn. More or less of transient labor will be needed, much 
of which may in some cases be performed by women and 
children. A location near a thickly-settled community is 
almost a necessity for small-fruit growing, in which much 
extra labor is needed during the harvest season. 

b. An available supply of manure or fertilizers at prices 
that the market value of the crops will warrant. Home- 
made manure is cheapest, but cannot often be provided in 
sufficient quantity. Manure can usually be most cheaply 
purchased in the neighborhood of a town or city, but is 
sometimes available elsewhere, as from railways, slaughter- 
houses, glue factories, etc. Commercial fertilizers may be 
ordered directly, or through agents, to be delivered at the 
nearest freight depot. 

c. Proximity to fruit establishments. A location near a 
canning factory, fruit evaporator, or a jelly, jam, cider or 
vinegar factory is desirable as offering a means for dispos- 
ing of the lower grades of fruit. 

d. Proximity to package manufactories. A location near 
a factory that turns out the kinds of packages most used 
on the fruit plantation, is an incidental advantage. 



General Considerations. 7 

7. The selection of varieties. Success in commercial 
fruit growing depends much upon the selection of the 
proper varieties for growing. These must be so well 
adapted to their environment that they will be regularly 
productive, and their fruit must be of a character that 
commands a good price. Most varieties can be grown to 
perfection only in certain districts, and it is usually diffi- 
cult to ascertain what varieties will do best in a given lo- 
cality. Much may be learned from reading, from observa- 
tion and from the experience of fruit growers and fruit 
dealers, but the grower will still find it necessary to experi- 
ment largely for himself. A " trial ground " is an essen- 
tial part of the commercial fruit plantation. 

The successful market varieties of the different fruits 
vary in different localities and at different periods. It is, 
therefore, impracticable to recommend a list of varieties in 
a vrork of this kind. 

8. Commercial and domestic varieties. Varieties may 
be divided into two classes with reference to the trade for 
which they are grown. Those intended for sale in the 
open market, especially if they must be shipped, require 
different properties from those intended for delivery direct 
to the consumer. The former may be called commercial 
varieties^ the latter domestic varieties. 

Commercial varieties demand attractive appearance, large 
size and good carriage and keeping qualities. High edible 
quality is generally considered of secondary importance. 
It should be remembered, however, that fruit is purchased 
by the consumer primarily for its pleasing and refreshing 
edible qualities, and that the more pleasing and refreshing 
a given sample is found to be, the more of it will be pur- 
chased as a rule. High edible quality should be regarded 
as one of tLj essentials of a market variety. 



8 Lessons in Fruit Growing. 

Domestic varieties demand special adaptation to some 
particular purpose, as for dessert, for canning, for jam or 
for jelly, rather than attractiveness or keeping quality. 
Domestic varieties require the higher skill in their produc- 
tion and marketing, and they often yield the larger and 
surer profits. They cannot, however, alvs^ays be sold in as 
large quantities as commercial varieties. 

9. Procuring: stock for planting:. Some pomologists are 
of the opinion that the selection of cions and buds for 
propagation from productive individual plants is essential 
to the best success in fruit culture. While this proposition 
may not have been demonstrated, it is probably true and 
prudence would dictate its careful observance. This, how- 
ever, will necessitate that the fruit grower become a nur- 
seryman. At any rate the stock needed for the fruit plan- 
tation can generally be purchased cheaper and much 
quicker from a professional nurseryman, than it can be 
grown in the quantities commonly needed for planting. 
In buying stock, the locality, the seller and the time of 
year are points to be considered. 

The locality where stock should he purchased. The nearer 
by the stock can be found, the more cheaply can it be de- 
livered, and the shorter is the time needed for transporta- 
tion. Stock grown under conditions most similar to those 
under which it is to be planted is generally preferable, but 
probably more depends upon the condition of the stock 
when planted than upon its nativity. The best way is for 
the purchaser to go to the nursery, select and dig the stock, 
and have it delivered at his grounds without boxing or 
baling. 

The parties from whom stock should he purchased. Stock 
must generally be purchased from one or more nurserymen 



General C onsidei^ations. 9 

or nursery middlemen. Since it is often impossible to dis- 
tinguish varieties of young stock with certainty, the pur- 
chaser must depend much on the integrity and care of the 
seller. As nurserymen are commonly more thoroughly 
established, and have more capital invested than middle- 
men, they are generally more anxious to maintain a good 
business reputation. The more times the stock changes 
hands the greater is the liabilit}'' to mistakes. For these 
reasons it is usually safer to deal directly with the growers 
of the stock, and when considerable quantities of stock are 
to be purchased, the middleman's commission can often be 
saved by so doing. Traveling nursery agents are usually 
least reliable of those who handle nursery stock, and their 
prices are apt to be highest. 

The time to ])urchase stock will depend upon the time 
the planting is contemplated, and this will naturally vary 
with the kind of fruit and the climate. It is generally 
best, however, to order early, while the nurseryman's as- 
sortment is complete, and before his hurrying season ar- 
rives. Specific orders should be given as to the time the 
stock is desired for planting in order that the nurseryman 
may know when to ship it. In climates of severe winters 
it is often wise to have trees delivered in autumn for spring 
planting, and to bury them in a well drained place until 
spring. 

10. Wind-breaks, A wind-break is a planting, usually 
•of trees or tall shrubs, intended to break the force of winds. 
It generally consists of one or more rows of rather closely- 
planted trees, and is usually located to serve as a shelter 
from the prevailing winds only. Wind-breaks are helpful 
to the fruit plantation, as a rule, unless it is already pro- 
tected from severe winds by natural barriers. They tend 



30 Lessons in Fruit Growing. 

to reduce evaporation, to retain snow and leaves on the 
ground in winter, and they facilitate work in the planta- 
tion in windy weather. In orchards they lessen wind-falls^ 
the breaking and bending of trees and damage to blossoms. 

A wind-break may prove injurious by intercepting winds 
that are tempered by a near body of water, thus increasing 
the cold, and sometimes by promoting frost to the leeward 
by obstructing air current^. These effects may be largely 
avoided by planting the wind-break thinly for such expos- 
ures, thus permitting some movement of the air between 
the trees. A wind-break may sometimes favor injurious 
insects and fungi, and may cause a dearth of soil water in 
the near vicinity, but these effects may be largely obviated 
by the use of parasite preventives, as spraying, by good 
cultivation, and in the case of orchards, by planting the' 
wind-break at the same time as the trees, and at a liberal 
distance from them. 

As a rule, a closely planted wind-break, as of the denser 
evergreens, is preferable for plantations not perceptibly 
influenced by a body of water, and with good cold-air 
drainage. Deciduous trees or thinly-planted evergreens 
are often preferable near a body of water or where the cold- 
air drainage is interrupted. 

The Norway spruce is most extensively planted as a 
wind-break in northern United States. Nut trees have 
been suggested as a wind-break for fruit plantations, but 
they would generally grow too slowly and too open at the 
bottom, while the close planting necessary for the pur- 
poses of a wind-break would be unfavorable to the produc- 
tion of nuts. 

11. Designation of varieties. The names of varieties 
planted for fruiting should be preserved. The varieties 



General Considerations. 11 

should be designated in the field by appropriate stakes or 
labels, but as these are subject to many accidents and are 
rarely durable, an additional record should be kept. A map 
of the plantation, on which every variety is located and 
named, is very convenient for reference, but where it is 
desired to preserve notes of the different varieties, a book 
or card catalogue is also desirable. If a book is used, a 
page may be devoted to each variety, or to each individual 
tree or plant if desired, and the names of the varieties may 
be indexed for reference. The card catalogue is perhaps 
best, especially for large plantations. In this method, the 
name or number of each variety, tree or plant of which it 
is desired to preserve notes, is written near the top of a 
card, and the cards are arranged in a box or drawer in the 
same order in which the names occur in the plantation. 
The cards indicating the varieties in one row may be in- 
closed in a rubber band. The different fruits may be sepa- 
rated by wider cards or by pieces of thin board. The cards 
should be large enough for recording all needed data. If 
a tree or a variety is removed from the plantation, the card 
corresponding to it is taken out of the box; or if one is 
transplanted, its card is removed in like manner. Thus the 
list is not cumbered with varieties no longer grown, and 
shows every variety in the plantation in its proper place. 
Where many varieties are grown a supplementary card 
catalogue, in which each card contains the name of one 
variety and designates its location, and in which the names 
are arranged in strict alphabetical order, is also needed for 
locating varieties of which the place has been forgotten. 

12. Harmful parasites and diseases. The fruit grower 
must be watchful for these during the growing season, or 
much harm may result before the cause is discovered. The 



12 Lessons in Fruit Growing. 

insects and diseases that affect the different fruit plants 
will be treated separately for each class, but largely the 
same apparatus and materials will be needed for all. A 
good spraying pump with an attachment that secures a 
uniform mixture of the materials, and that is capable of 
spraying kerosene and water together, with a nozzle that 
gives an adjustable spray, with ready unclogging facilities, 
will be almost indispensable, as will conveniences for pre- 
paring the Bordeaux mixture.* The capacity of the spray- 
ing apparatus needed will depend much upon the size of 
the plantation. For large plantations, a pump operated 
by horse power will be very useful, while one operated by 
steam may be needed for those of the largest size. 

13. The conditions affecting: fruitfulness are but par- 
tially understood. In a climate favorable to a given fruit, 
fruitfulness probably depends more upon variety than upon 
outside conditions. Of the latter, those that promote a 
healthful condition of the plant and moderate growth 
doubtless tend to normal fruitfulness. Vigorous growth 
is generally opposed to fruitfulness, and so are severe 
drought and insufficient potash and phosphoric acid in the 
soil. An excessive crop of fruit is apt to be followed by a 
partial or complete failure of crop. The flower buds of our 
fruit plants are formed the season previous to their expan- 
sion, and the weather during or just preceding the flower- 
forming period most likely exerts a potent influence upon 
the number of flowers formed. The weather during the 
expansion of the flowers and the setting of the fruit is 
probably, also potent. But excepting the effects of frost at 
blooming time, these influences are, as yet, little nnder- 

* For a discussion of various insecticides and fungicides, and directions for 
preparing the Bordeaux mixture, see "Principles of Plant Culture." 



General Considerations. 13 

stood. In fruits of which the flower buds are more subject 
to harm from cold than the leaf buds, as in the stone fruits, 
the flower buds are often destroyed in winter. 

14. The self-Sterility of varieties. Recent investigations 
have shown that many, perhaps most, varieties of fruit are 
infertile to their own pollen: i. e., their flowers will not set 
fruit unless their stigmas receive pollen from some other 
variety. For example, the Bartlett pear fruits well only 
when its stigmas receive pollen from some other kind of 
pear than Bartlett. . The limits of self-sterility have not 
been determined, but until they are determined it is wise to 
mingle varieties freely in the fruit plantation, rather than 
to plant large blocks of a single variety. As a rule, more 
than two rows of a given variety should not be planted to- 
gether. Care should also be taken to plant varieties to- 
gether, so far as practicable, that bloom at the same time. 

15. Fruit packages should be provided early to avoid 
delays in harvesting. They may often be advantageously 
secured during the winter, so that they can be nailed up 
and branded when time is less valuable than duidng the 
growing season. They should be stored in a dry place 
where the sun cannot shine upon them, and away from 
rats and mice. Damp package-material to be kept some 
time before putting in shape should be piled loosely to pre- 
vent mildew. As the package is influential in selling the 
fruit, neatness in its appearance is important. Second- 
hand packages should only be used for inferior fruit. The 
different kinds of packages are considered in connection 
with the fruits for which they are used. 

The requisites to a good package are (a) sufficient 
strength, (b) neatness, (c) cheapness and (d) lightness. 
"Gift" packages, i. e., those that are furnished free with 



14: Lessons in Fruit Growing. 

the fruit are usually most satisfactory. A returnable pack- 
age must be made comparatively heavy and costly to pro- 
vide sufficient strength; it soon becomes soiled from use, 
and often causes trouble by not being promptly returned. 

The grower's name and address should be put upon every 
package of good fruit, and an attractive trade-mark will 
aid in securing a reputation. 

16. When and how should fruit be picked? With a few 
•exceptions, of which the pear is one (77), fruit reaches its 
highest edible quality when left attached to the plant until 
fully ripe. The stage of ripeness at which it should be picked, 
however, depends upon the market. Fruit supplied direct 
to the consumer should be picked and delivered when in best 
condition for the use intended. If for dessert, it should be 
picked fully ripe; if for canning it may need to be picked 
a little hard. The purchaser should generally be consulted 
on these points. 

Fruit that must be shipped to market should be picked 
sufficiently hard, and be so packed as to endure the jour- 
ney without damage from bruising. Allowance should be 
made for the time required in, and the manner of transit, 
for the season, the weather and the variety. Fruit that is 
to be but one hour in transit may be picked riper than that 
which will be five to ten hours on the journey; that which 
is to be carried by water may usually be picked somewhat 
riper than that which is to go by rail for a similar time. 
Tender-fleshed varieties should be picked less mature than 
firm-fleshed ones. 

Abrasions of the skin and bruises, however small, detract 
from the market value and keeping quality of fruits, and 
hence should be carefully avoided. The bloom of fruits 
possessing bloom should be preserved intact. Fruit should 



General Considerations. 1 5 

only be picked while the skia is dry, as a rule, and should 
never be permitted to become wet after picking, for moist- 
ure on the skin promotes decay. Nor should picked fruit 
be exposed to the sun's rays in warm weather. The more 
tender the fruit, the more important is it to observe these 
precautions. As a rule, the sooner fruit can be removed 
to the packing or storing house after picking, the better. 

IT. Grading and packing:. First impressions are potent 
in forming judgment, hence fruit exposed for sale should 
be put up to present the finest appearance consistent with 
honest packing. Uniformity of size and quality in the 
package promotes a favorable impression, hence fruits 
should be graded, so far as practicable, and different grades 
should be separately packed. An intelligent buyer seldom 
offers much more for an ungraded package of fruit than he 
regards the poorer samples worth, hence the better speci- 
mens sell for less than their value. If the quality is uni- 
form throughout the package, an artistic arrangement of 
the specimens on the exposed part is legitimate and com- 
mendable. 

18. Packinghouses. Where large quantities of fruits 
are grown, a building will be needed for packing and tem- 
porary storage. The character of this building will depend 
somewhat upon the time the fruit is expected to remain in 
it. If the building is to serve the purpose of a winter store- 
house for long-keeping fruits, it should be provided with a 
cellar that can be kept from freezing in severe weather. It 
is also desirable to have a compartment connected with the 
packing house for the storage of package material, but this 
is generally a second-story room. The size of the building 
will of course depend much upon the amount of fruit pro- 
duced. It should be arranged with reference to conven- 



16 Lessons in Fruit Growing. 

ience in loading and unloading fruit from a wagon, and if 
intended for the tree fruits, it should have well-lighted as- 
sorting tables at convenient points. 

As it is important that the temperature of the packing 
. house be kept cool as possible, a location that is shaded by 
trees is preferable, and the house should generally be ceiled, 
plastered or papered inside, in such manner as to provide 
an air space in the wall. Care should also be taken to keep 
the building free from rats and mice. 

If the house is built in a depression where cool air settles 
at night, it may be kept considerably cooler than if located 
on higher ground, but it should be remembered that the 
location that is coolest in summer will also be coldest in 
winter. 

19. Storage of fruit. Cold-storage houses are so costly 
that only extensive fruit growers can afford to provide 
them. If the grower desires to keep his produce much be- 
yond its normal ripening period, he will generally do better 
to place it in a commercial cold-storage house, j^aying the 
required rate for the privilege. 

The storage house is most economically kept from freez- 
ing in severe winter weather by sinking the floor more or 
less below the surface of the ground. It is generally pre- 
ferable to do this even in climates of mild winters, because 
this aids in keeping the storage room cool. The depth to 
which the floor is sunk below the surface should depend 
upon the severity of the winter climate. It is neither de- 
sirable nor economical to depend on artificial heat to keep 
out frost. The portion of the wall built above ground, 
whether of wood or other material, should be provided 
with at least one dead-air space, and if wood is used, a 
layer of building paper outside and inside of the wall will 



General Considerations. 17 

tend to keep out lieat and cold. The roof of the storage 
room should also have afc least one dead-air space. If the 
storage room is placed beneath the packing room, this is 
readily accomplished by ceiling or plastering directly on 
the floor joists; but if the roof of the storage room is also 
the roof of the building, the roof boards should be laid 
close, and a layer of lath and plaster may be added just be- 
neath them and ceiling or lath and plaster may also be 
added to the lower edge of the rafters. 

The storage room may be kept cool in warm weather by 
admitting air on cool nights, and ventilators should be 
provided for this purpose. A ventilator should be placed 
in the roof for the exit of warm air. On cool nights 
the ventilators should be opened to change the air. The 
warm air will pass out through the roof ventilator, and 
cool air will enter through the lower ventilators. The 
ventilators should be closed during the warmer hours of 
the day. 

20. Classification of the different fruits. In treating the 
culture of different fruits, it is convenient to arrange them 
into various groups, depending chiefly upon the growth 
habit and size of the plant, and to a less degree upon bo- 
tanical characters. To acquaint the student with botani- 
cal relations, the species belonging to the same genus are 
generally treated together, and their common characteris- 
tics, so far as they have a cultural importance, are noted. 

The three principal groups to which the fruits treated 
are referred are: 

1. The tree fruits, including the fruits grown on trees or 
the largest shrubs. 

2. The grape. 

3. The small fruits, including those grown on small 
shrubs or low herbaceous plants. 



18 Lessons in Fruit Growing. 

SUMMART OE THE PEECEDIN"a CHAPTER 

1. Fruit-growing in the United States and Canada is 
tending to beeoma a business by itself, rather than to re- 
main an adjunct to the farm (2). 

2. Fruit growing requires education along two distinct 
lines, viz. : the raising and the selling of the fruit (3). 

3. The outlook for commercial fruit growing is as good 
as for any other branch of productive industry (4). 

4. The choice of a location for commercial fruit growing 
should be governed chiefly by the favorableness of the soil 
and climate, and the opportunities for mar "meting the 
fruit (6). 

5. Success in commercial fruit growing will depend 
much upon the selection of the proper varieties of the 
fruits grown (7). 

6. It is commonly best to purchase stock for planting 
from a grower rather than from a middleman, and as near 
the place where it is to be planted as possible. It is gen- 
erally wise to order early (9). 

7. A wind-break, properly grown, is beneficial to a fruit 
plantation not already protected from prevailing winds (10). 

8. The fruit grower should provide apparatus for com- 
bating harmful parasites and diseases, and should be watch- 
ful for their appearance (12). 

9. With a fruit in its proper locality, fruitfulness prob- 
ably depends more upon variety than upon outside condi- 
tions (13). 

10. Owing to the self-sterility of many varieties, more 
than two rows of the same variety should not, as a rule, be 
planted together. Varieties that bloom at the same time 
should be planted adjacent (14). 

11. Fruit packages should be provided early to avoid de- 
lays in harvesting (15). 



General Considerations. 19 

12. Every package of good fruit should be branded with 
the name and address of the grower (15), 

13. The degree of ripeness at which fruit should be 
picked depends upon the use for which it is intended (16). 

14. Fruit should be graded and uniformly packed (17). 

15. A packing and storing house is needed where large 
•quantities of fruit are grown (18). 

SUGGESTIOljrS POR LABORATOET WORK 

1. Ascertain the different kinds of fruits and nuts that 
are grown commercially in the vicinity of your school or 
college; also the most successful varieties of each. 

2. Ascertain the different kinds of fresh fruits and of 
nuts that are sold in the local market near your school or 
college, and where each sample seen was grown. 

3. With the aid of a railroad map, locate the place in 
your state or territory that offers the best transportation 
facilities for marketing fruit. 

4. If a topographical map is available, ascertain the lo- 
cality in your state or territory that would seem to offer 
the best location for fruit growing, independent of market 
•considerations. 

5. Select the best location for a fruit farm in the vicin- 
ity of your school or college. 

6. Practice nailing up the different kinds of fruit pack- 
ages to acquire dexterity in the work. 

7. Study the methods of packing illustrated by the fruits 
exposed for sale in your local market, and observe which 
methods appear most satisfactory. 



20 Lessons in Fruit Growing, 

CHAPTER II 

TREE-FRUIT OR ORCHARD CULTURE 

Section 1 — General Statements 

21. Orchard — Definition. Tree fruits are commonly- 
grown in orchards. An orchard is an in closure or planta- 
tion of trees or large shrubs intended to produce fruits or 
nuts, 

22. Orchard sites. Of the considerations previously 
mentioned regarding the location of the fruit plantation 
(6), those relating to freedom from frost and disastrous 
winter freezing are perhaps most important in locating the 
orchard, A site sufficiently elevated to give good air 
drainage, and sloping if at all, away from the warmest sun- 
shine, is most favorable for the orchard unless it is near a 
large body of water. In the latter case the ground should 
generally slope if at all, toward the water, regardless of 
the direction, 

A young orchard should not, as -a rule, be planted oa 
ground from which an old orchard of the same kind of fruit 
has recently been removed, 

23. The class and age of trees to huy. Fruit trees are 
generally graded as first and second class, the first class 
trees being straighter and more symmetrical than the sec- 
ond, and commonly selling at a higher price. Unless one 
can see the trees before purchasing, it. is safer to order those 
of the first class. Where both classes are equally healthy 
and free from insects, however, the best-rooted second-class 
trees of a given size will often give as good results in the 
orchard as those of the first class, for the irregularities of 
the stem and branches maj^- be corrected by pruning. 



Orchard Culture — General Siaiements. 21 

As a rule, rather young trees, provided tliey are large 
enough to endure isolated planting, are preferable to older 
ones, because they can be dug more cheaply and with less 
damage to the roots, they can be transported and planted 
more cheaply, possess greater vigor, can be more readily 
pruned to an ideal type, and their first cost is usually less. 
While such trees may begin fruiting a little later than 
older ones, they are Diore likely to prove enduring, because 
they commonly develop in a more nearly normal manner. 

Nursery trees are usually graded by size rather than by 
age, and the size is not a sure index of the age, since some 
varieties and some individuals of the same variety grow 
faster than others. In a given variety, the individuals that 
develop at a medium rate are probably preferable for fruit- 
ing to those that develop fastest or slowest. 

"24. The health and cleanness of nursery trees. Nur- 
sery stock is liable to infection, both in roots and tops, 
with injurious insects and diseases, and destructive para- 
sites are sometimes disseminated with such stock. The 
seller should be required to show certificate that his stock 
is apparently clean and healthy. Many countries now 
have laws requiring the inspection of nursery stock, and 
certificates of such inspection ma}^ generally be accepted 
as evidence that the stock covered by them is safe for 
planting. 

25. Soil preparation for orchards. If the land is well 
drained, and free from stumps and stones, little special 
preparation will be necessary unless it is designed to irri- 
gate, in which case some grading may be required. The 
soil should be in a moderate condition of fertility, and 
should be prepared for the trees by being well plowed and 
harrowed. 



22 Lessons in Friiit Growing. 

Land witli a compact or impervious subsoil should be 
deeply plowed. A thorough subsoiling will often prove 
beneficial for deep-rooting trees, as pears. The soil of the 
plat should be rendered as nearly uniform as possible so 
that the whole area may receive the same after-treatment. 
Land that has been some time under tillage is generally pref- 
erable to sod, though the latter may be used if the ground 
was well subdued when seeded. 

26. Layin§: out orchards. The trees are usually planted 
either in squares or triangles (quincunx). The latter 
method of planting admits a larger number of trees per 
acre with the same distance between the trees. Straight 
rows in the orchard should be insisted on, and may be at- 
tained with a little care. Procure a strong, firmly-woven 
cord, not less than one-fourth inch in diameter, and as long 
as one side of the orchard, or less if the orchard is very 
large. Having stretched this line firmly to take out its 
elasticity, tie bits of red yarn tightly about it, at the exact 
distance the trees are to be planted apart. On a dry, still 
day, stretch this line tightly along one side of the plat to 
be planted, to mark the first row, and drive a stake at each 
red mark on the line. Then, if the trees are to be planted 
in squares, place the line exactly at right angles to this 
row, at one end, and mark off in a similar way the dis- 
tances at which the rows are to be apart. Next mark the 
third side parallel to the second, after which, placing the 
line between corresponding stakes on. opposite sides of the 
plat, insert the intermediate stakes in the same manner. 

The triangle method is a little more complex, since the 
rows are nearer together than are the trees in the row. 
The first row may, however, be laid out exactly as de- 
scribed above. Then tie a cord to the first stake at one 



Orchard Culture — General Statements. 23 

eud of the row, stretch it to the second stake and tie a short 
stake into the line at the exact distance of the second stake, 
to serve as a marker. Now describe the segment of a circle 



I 
I 

II 

I 
I 



)^ 





f-A 




Ol 

1 


Is 

|0 




i 


G 


— — __.— . 



Fig. 1. Method of laying out orchards hy the 
"triangle" or "quincunx" system. 

on the ground with the marker, around toward the second 
row. (Fig. 1.) Then attach the end of the cord to the 
second stake and make a similar segment from this stake. 
The point where these segments cross (A) locates the first 



24 Lessons in Fruit Growing. 

tree of the second row. Mark in the same way at the other 
end of the first row (B), after -which stretch the line and 
stake oJEf the second row in the same manner as the first. 
The distance between the rows can now be readily meas- 
ured, and the rows may then be laid off at this distance by 
stretching the line at right angles to the first row. The 
distances between the rows may be indicated on the cord 
by a differentlj'-colored yarn from that used to indicate 
the distance between the trees. The first stake of each 
alternate row should be set one-half the distance the trees 
are to be placed apart from the end (AC). Several other 
good methods of la3nng out orchards are described in 
Bailey's "Principles of Fruit Growing." 

27. The planting of orchard trees has been considered 
in detail in " Principles of Plant Culture," but an addi- 
tional hint will aid in securing straight rows. To avoid 
losing the mark where the tree is to be set, in digging the 




Fig. 2. Device to locate the tree after the hole is du?. 

hole for it, use a short board having a notch at the center 
and a hole bored through it near each end. (Fig. 2.) The 
holes near the ends of the board should be exactly equi- 
distant from the center of the notch, and in a straight line 
with it. Before digging the hole, place the board so that 
the stake indicating the position of the tree comes in the 
notch at the center (A), and put other stakes through the 
holes at the ends of the boai-d (BB). The board may then 
be removed without displacing the end stakes, and the hole 



Orchard Culture — General Statements. 



or, 



dug, after which the board is replaced, when the bottom of 
the notch will mark the place for the tree. 

28. The care of youn§: orchard trees. Recently-planted 
trees require frequent examination. If the buds do not 
open promptly, the top should be further reduced. Un- 
desirable shoots and branches should 
be promptly rubbed off, and close 
watch should be kept for harmful 
insects. Shading of the trunk, in 
trees that do not start vigorously, is 
important in localities where the 
sun's rays shine with great intensity, 
as in the Mississippi Valley and other 
central continental regions. Wire 
netting, straw, or screens made of 
lath or cornstalks may be used to 
pi'otect the trees against sun-scald, 
damage from bark-eating animals, 
and in a measure from damage from 
whiffletrees. The lath screen (Fig. 3) 
is probably most durable, but it does 
not readily adjust itself to different 
heights of trunk and is too heavy 
for small trees. Rye straw placed 
vertically about the trunk and per- 
mitted to extend up among the 
branches, tied on by three or more 
bands of wool twine, makes a very 
•cheap and effective protection that 
will often last as long as protection is needed. Straw 
protectors do not appear to harbor harmful insects. 
Water-proof paper answers well for winter, but should 







Fig. 3. Tree inclosed in 
lath protector. 



26 Lessons in Fruit Groiving. 

not be left on during summer, as it is durable only when 
tied close to the trunk, when it harbors insects. Protectors 
are sometimes made of cornstalks by passing wires through 
them, but the labor required is probablj'' sufficient to ojffset 
the cheapness of the material. Veneer protectors made 
of cheap lumber are now manufactured for sale. They 
are readily put on and are fairly satisfactory. Protectors 
made of mosquito-wire netting are effectual but not 
durable. 

Trees of which the trunks are not strong enough to sup- 
port the heads should be staked, preferably by driving two 
stakes on opposite sides of the tree and tying the trunk to- 
each stake with a straw band or strip of cloth. 

29. Soil treatment for orchards. Ground planted to an 
orchard should be used for orchard purposes primarily, and 
should be given the treatment that best promotes the devel- 
opment and fruitfulness of the trees. Cropping the orchard 
for the crop's sake is only admissible, as a rule, when the 
trees are so young that their roots do not fully occupy the 
ground (31). 

Orchard trees in the temperate zones usually complete 
their season's wood growth before midsummer. The re- 
mainder of the warm season is devoted to maturing the 
young wood and the fruit, in forming flower buds and in 
preparing food for the early growth of the following year. 
In climates of severe winters, hardiness of the trees de- 
pends much upon complete maturity of the wood in au- 
tumn. 

The soil of the orchard should, therefore, be treated to- 
conserve soil moisture during spring and early summer, 
and to promote wood maturity during late summer and 
autumn. Tillage should usually begin early in the springs 



Orchard Culture — General Statements. 27 

and continue until the close of the growth period. It 
may continue somewhat later with entirely hardy trees, 
but where the trees are liable to winter injury, moderate 
drying of the soil should be encouraged in late summer and 
autumn. In regions where irrigation is practiced, this is 
readily accomplished by withholding water. In other lo- 
calities, dryness of the soil may be promoted by ceasing 
cultivation and sowing a " cover crop." 

30. Cover crops are useful (a) in taking up excessive 
moisture from the soil late in the season, (b) in preventing 
wash and loss of fertility during fall, winter and spring, 

(c) in preventing deep freezing of the ground in winter, 

(d) in hastening drying of the ground in early spring, and 

(e) in supplying the soil with humus and sometimes with 
nitrogen. A cover crop should be sown, as a rule, about 
midsummer, or as the normal growth period ends. The 
leguminous crops are useful as cover crops on soils defi- 
cient in nitrogen, since they enrich the soil with this ele- 
ment; but on rich land on which trees tend to grow very 
rapidly, a cover crop that adds no nitrogen to the soil is 
preferable. The particular cover crop to be selected will 
depend upon the season, the climate and the physical con- 
dition of the soil. In dry seasons and climates, and on land 
not in the best condition, the larger-seeded crops will usu- 
ally prove more reliable than the smaller-seeded ones. In 
all cases, a sufficient amount of seed should be sown per 
acre to furnish growth enough to make a good mat of 
herbage over the soil at the beginning of winter. 

Of the nitrogen-gathering cover crops, the clovers, cow 
peas, vetches, peas and beans are available. 

Of the non-nitrogen-gathering cover crops, rye and other 
cereals, buckwheat, millet, turnips and rape may be used. 



28 Lessons in Fruit Growing. 

31. Cropping orchards. If the trees of the orchard are 
planted at the proper distance apart, their roots will not 
nse the whole area for forage the first few years after plant- 
ing. The unused portion may, therefore, be devoted to 
such other crops as tend to improve, or at least which do 
not injure, the physical condition of the soil, provided suffi- 
cient plant food is added to maintain fertility. The more 
the land inclines to drought, the less should it be cropped. 
An area at least six feet across should be left unplanted 
about each tree the season following the tree planting, and 
this area should be considerably extended each subsequent 
year, for the roots of fruit trees spread rapidly. When the 
orchard begins to fruit well, further cropping should be 
discontinued, as a rule. In general, only low-growing, 
annual crops, that demand good tillage but not high ma- 
nuring, and are harvested early, should be grown in the or- 
chard. One or two rows of strawberries or other small 
fruits, planted between each two rows of trees the same 
season the trees are planted, may be admissible, but as a 
rule, early potatoes, beets, carrots or peas would be prefer- 
able. Grrain and hay crops extract too much fertility and 
moisture. Sod in the orchard is especially objectionable, 
as it promotes drouth and favors insects. 

Over-vigorous and tardy-fruiting young apple and pear 
orchards may sometimes be rendered fruitful by seeding the 
land to grass, but the sod should not be permitted to re- 
main until the trees become unduly checked. In case of 
such seeding, it is much better to pasture the orchard than 
to remove a crop of hay. 

32. The kind of tillage practiced should depend upon 
conditions. Young orchards, in which the ground was 
not in the best mechanical condition when planted, are 



Orchard Culture — General Statements. 29 

preferably plowed rather deep once eacli spring as early as 
practicable, for a few years, except near the trees, to en- 
courage deep rooting, to thoroughly mis and crumble the 
soil and to retain as much soil moisture as possible. Till- 
age later in the season may be given with the harrow or 
cultivator. As a rule, the entire surface soil should be 
stirred once each ten days or fortnight while the tillage 
lasts; but if the growth of the trees is excessive, to the 
detriment of fruitfulness, tillage may be less frequent. The 
cut-away or spading harrow is excellent for keepiug clay 
soils loose, and may be used after heavy rains. The spring- 
tooth harrow or clod crusher answers well for lighter soils, 
or after moderate rains on heavy soil. The smoothing 
harrow is excellent for stirring and leveling the surface 
and for maintaining a fine dirt mulch. All of these tools 
should be provided when practicable. Where cover crops 
are grown an annual spring plowing is necessary, but the 
depth of plowing may be reduced as the soil becomes sub- 
dued. 

All precautions should be taken to avoid injuring the 
trees. Harnesses without metal projections, and short, 
padded whiffletrees are preferable. Special orchard har- 
nesses that use no whiffletrees are now made, and are ex- 
cellent for orchard tillage. The plow should be turned out 
two or three feet from the trunk of a tree. A single-horse 
plow with a set-over beam is excellent for use near the 
tree trunks. 

Tillage beneath trees with low tops may be accomplished 
by spreading the halves of a double harrow or cultivator 
with a long doubletree. 

33. Hi§:h or low heading of trees. Very high-headed 
trees are objectionable for several reasons: 



30 Lessons in Fruit Growing. 

(a) The leverage of wind upon the trunk, and the danger 
of breaking down in storms are greater than in low-headed 
trees. 

(b) The expense of gathering the fruit is greater. 

(c) The damage from windfalls is greater. 

(d) The expense of spraying and pruning is greater. 
Very low-headed trees are also objectionable for the fol- 
lowing reasons: 

(a) The difficulty of working the soil about them is 
greater than in high-headed trees. 

(b) The circulation of air among the branches is hin- 
dered, which results in increased damage from fungous 
diseases. 

Low heading was formerly advocated as a means of pre- 
Tenting sun-scald, but this can be better accomplished by 
shading the trunk. 

As a rule, a head of inedium height — four to five feet — 
is preferable for standard trees. The dwarf varieties of the 
plum and cherry may be headed somewhat lower. 

34. Principles of pruning: orchard trees. The general 
principles of pruning are discussed in "Principles of Plant 
Culture," but a few points that apply especially to fruit 
trees are here added. 

1. Before attempting to prune a fruit tree, the pruner 
should acquaint himself with the fruiting habit of the spe- 
cies: i. e., the parts of the tree that produce the flowers 
and fruit. 

2. The pruning should be such as to encourage, as far as 
possible, the normal development of the fruiting parts. 

3. Rapid growth and fruitfuluess are generally opposed 
to each other. The parts of the tree that grow fastest, 
therefore, usually produce least fruit. 



Orchard Culture — General Statements. 31 

4. The growth of a given part of the tree is largel}^ de- 
termined by the amount of water it receives from the roots, 
and this depends chiefly upon the number of times it is 
diverted by branching from the axis of growth. It follows 
that the parts of the tree that are most times diverted by 
branching are most likely to form flower buds, provided 
they receive abundant light. Pruning should, therefore, 
favor branching. Vertical shoots, excepting the leader, 
should be discouraged. The branches should be thinned 
sufficiently to admit plenty of light. 

5. The bud may be regarded as the unit of growth, both of 
wood and fruit, and the fruit tree may be regarded as two 
or more crops of buds of different ages, one crop of which 
should blossom and fruit each year, while another crop is 
produced to take its place. Some new wood must, there- 
fore, be produced each year, to provide the new crop of 
buds. A small amount of growth upon all of the branches 
should be the aim. 

6. Pruning should be moderate and regular. At least 
one careful pruning must be given each year. Spasmodic 
and excessive pruuings, if intended to promote fruitful- 
ness, generally do more harm than good, as the immediate 
result. 

35. Summer pruning:. As vigorous trees start growth 
in spring, buds often push into shoots on the trunk and 
branches. Such shoots on the trunk are always superflu- 
ous, and should be rubbed off before their leaves are fully 
expanded. They may or may not be superfluous on the 
branches, since they may develop into fruit spurs if allowed 
to remain, but they usually need thinning out more or 
less, and on very young trees, those forming on the inner 
side of the branches should generally be removed. Shoots 



33 Lessons in Fruit Growing, 

that incline to grow beyond the lines of symmetry should 
be pinched. 

Proper summer pruning will greatly reduce the labor of 
the annual pruning. But summer pruning should be lim- 
ited to pinching and the rubbing off of incipient shoots, 
as a rule. The removal of growing shoots after their foli-- 
age is well developed is detrimental to the vigor of the tree, 
since it removes the leaves that have been formed from re- 
serve food before they have had time to restore the food 
they have consumed. 

Branches that are dying from fungous disease, winter 
injury or other causes, should be removed as soon as dis- 
covered. 

36. The fertilizing of orchards. However fertile and 
Avell-tilled the land may be at the beginning, the yield of 
fruit can hardly continue to be profitable unless fertilizing 
materials are added to the soil in amount corresponding 
to that removed in the fruit crops. Prof. Roberts has 
estimated that an average crop of apples removes in round 
numbers, 11 pounds of nitrogen, nearly one pound of phos- 
phoric acid and 16 pounds of potash per acre. These esti- 
mates suggest how important it is to fertilize the apple 
orchard. We have no similar estimates for pear, plum or 
cherry orchards, nor for nut trees, but we may rest assured 
that these crops also remove large quantities of plant food 
from the soil. 

St. How Shall we know if fertilizers are needed ? The 
trees will furnish the evidence to some extent. If these 
are making rapid growth, have deep-green foliage, and 
mature their wood well, we may infer that their needs are 
already satisfied. If, on the contrary, they grow slowly 

' Bulletin 103, Cornell University Experiment Station. 



Orchard Culture — General Statements. 33 

the second or third year after planting, and have yellowish 
foliage, while being apparently free from parasites, we may 
conclude that their growth is being restricted by a lack of 
plant food, or of moisture, or both. The physical condition, 
of the soil should be first considered. If the soil is hard 
and lumpy, humus should be added b}"" growing some of 
the coarser cover crops, as rye or cow peas, or farm manure 
may be plowed in early in the spring. This treatment will 
probably produce the desired growth. If, as the trees reach 
bearing age, they are making very rapid growth and show 
little inclination to fruit, it may be inferred that they are 
receiving too much nitrogen. JSTon-nitrogen-gathering 
cover crops should then be used, and the proper balance 
restored by adding phosphoric acid and potash. Unleached 
wood ashes at the rate of 30 to 50 bushels per acre are ex- 
cellent for furnishing these constituents. Leached ashes 
are well worth applying, since they contain nearly all of 
their original phosphoric acid. In the absence of ashes, 
phosphoric acid and potash may be purchased in various 
forms. The first may be had as high-grade plain super- 
phosphate or in bone meal. The former contains 16 to 18 
per cent, of phosphoric acid, and 200 to 500 pounds per 
acre is a good dressing for a bearing orchard. Bone meal 
contains about 24 per cent, of total phosphoric acid, and 
about 3 per cent, of nitrogen. Two hundred to 500 pounds 
per acre is sufficient for one application. 

Potash is generally considered the most important con- 
stituent in orchard fertilizers, since fruits withdraw larger 
quantities of this component than of nitrogen or phos- 
phoric acid. Nitrogen, while relatively more expensive 
than potash, may be provided by growing leguminous 
cover crops. Muriate is perhaps the best form in which 
3 



34 Lessons in Fruit Growing. 

to apply potash where wood ashes are not available. One 
hundred to 200 pounds per acre is a good annual dressing. 

When nitrogen is needed it may be directly applied in 
stable manure, of which a moderate dressing will usually 
suffice. The amounts of these fertilizers noted may be 
understood to apply to orchards 5 to 10 years after the trees 
commence bearing. As the trees attain full size the amounts 
may be considerably increased. 

Potash and bone meal are preferably applied in the fall. 
The other fertilizers named are better applied in the spring 
before plowing. 

38. Thinning: fruit, i. e., picking off a part of the fruit 
before it is full grown to enable the remainder to attain 
larger size, is practiced by the more progressive growers in 
case of the larger tree fruits. Thinning is especially im- 
portant in very fruitful seasons, and in varieties that tend 
to overbear. The more defective specimens should be re- 
moved as soon as the damage to the fruit by its chief enemy, 
as the codling moth in the apple, or the curculio in the 
plum, becomes visible. Thinning rarely if ever increases 
the total yield of fruit, but it often materially increases the 
amount of the first-grade fruit, and it tends to prevent the 
harmful draft on the tree caused by an excessive crop. 
Thinning pays best when the fruit is grown for those 
markets that pay special prices for extra fine fruits. It is 
expensive when carefully done, but it dispenses with the 
cost of harvesting and marketing the part of the fruit that 
is sure to yield the smallest returns, while it enhances the 
value of the part left on the tree. 

39. Picking: conveniences. Various devices are needed 
to enable the picker to reach the fruit, the nature of which 
will depend much upon the height of the trees. Whatever 



Orchard Culture — General Statements. 



35 



their form, it is important that these devices be sufficiently 
strong and stable, without being needlessly heavy. For 
trees not exceeding 12 feet in height a three-legged step 
ladder (Fig. 4, A) is excellent. For taller trees, a light 

B 



A 





Fig. 4. Ts^pes of fruit ladders. 



ladder that can rest against the branches (B) is generally 
preferable. Extension ladders are convenient for very high 
trees. Much of the fruit of tall trees may be gathered by 
a light and nimble person standing on the main branches. 
In this case, shoes should be worn that will not injure the 
bark. 



36 Lessons in Fruit Growing. 

40. Grading: and packing:. Orctard fruits are generally- 
assorted after picking. This wotk is preferably done in a 
cool and dry place, and the fruit should have time to be- 
come cool before it is packed for market, otherwise it is 
liable to become moist in the package. The fruit is con- 
veniently assorted on a table or counter, having a narrow 
board nailed edgewise about the top to prevent the fruit 
from rolling off. All surfaces touched by the fruit should 
be covered with burlap or some other soft fabric. 

The number of grades made will depend much upon the 
kind of fruit and the general quality of the crop, as well 
as on the purpose for which it is to be sold. If the finest 
grade is intended to suit the most fastidious customers, and 
to rank as "fancy," only faultless specimens should be 
placed in it, and these should be of uniform, large size. 
Such fruits may often be advantageously wrapped in tissue 
paper, which tends to insure their arrival in the best con- 
dition. With choice samples of the larger fruits, as the 
finest varieties of pears, a package that gives a separate 
space to each individual fruit will sometimes prove a good 
investment. 

If the quality of the fruit will not justify a "fancy" 
grade, the best grade should still contain only fruits fairly 
uniform in size and maturity, and free from insect injuries 
or other blemishes. Doubtful specimens should be put 
into the lower grade rather than the higher. Two or more 
varieties should never be mixed in the same package, ex- 
cept in grades intended for manufactured products, as for 
cider or evaporation. 

SUMMAEY OF THE PRECEDING CHAPTER. 

1. An orchard site should be sufficiently elevated to give 
good air drainage, and should slope, if at all, away from 



Orchard Culture — General Statements. 37 

the brightest sunshine, except when near a body of water, 
when the slope should be toward the water (22). 

2. First-class trees should be purchased unless the buyer 
can select the trees from the nursery. Trees sufficiently 
grown to endure isolated planting are generally preferable 
to older ones (23). 

3. A certificate of the health and cleanness of nursery 
trees should be demanded (24). 

4. Land for an orchard should be well prepared before 
planting. Land with compact soil should be deeply 
plowed (25). 

5. The quincunx or triangle method of planting trees 
admits a larger number to the acre than the method of 
planting in squares (26). 

6. The trunks of recently-planted trees should be shaded 
for a time in climates having intense sunshine (28). 

7. The soil of the orchard should be treated to conserve 
water during spring and early summer, and to promote 
wood maturity during late summer and autumn (29). 

8. Cover crops are useful in preventing washing and deep 
freezing of the soil, in taking up excessive- moisture and in 
supplying the soil with humus (30). 

9. Only low-growing, annual crops, that demand good 
tillage but moderate manuring, and that are harvested 
early, are suitable for growing in the orchard (31). 

10. The soil of young orchards should generally be well 
plowed in spring, and cultivated or harrowed at least once 
a, fortnight until midsummer. The depth of plowing may 
be reduced as the soil becomes subdued (32). 

11. A medium height of head is most satisfactory for or- 
chard trees (33). 

12. Pruning should be moderate and regular, and above 
all, intelligently performed (34). 



38 Lessons in Fruit Growing. 

13. Fruit crops remove considerable quantities of fertil- 
ity from the soil, and the orchard should be fertilized ac- 
cordingly (36, 37). 

14. The fruit of trees that tend to overbear should be 
thinned in fruitful seasons by picking off the more defect- 
ive specimens while young (38). 

SUGGESTIONS FOE LABOEATOET WOEK 

1. Select the best site for an orchard on the school or 
college farm. 

2. If a nursery is within reach, select samples of first- 
and second-class trees. Practice in distinguishing the dif- 
ferent species of fruit trees by their appearance. If no 
nursery is conveniently located, samples of first- and sec- 
ond-class trees should be procured. 

3. Search for parasites on the fruit trees in the vicinity, 
and learn the names of the different species, and which 
ones are most harmful. 

4. Practice laying out a piece of ground for an orchard 
by the triangle method. 

5. Compute the number of trees that can be planted, by 
both the square and the triangle methods, in a square field 
of 10 acres, the trees to be 25 feet apart both ways, and no 
tree to be nearer than 121- feet to the boundary of the plat. 

6. If the time is favorable for pruning, practice pruning 
both young and bearing fruit trees, carrying out the prin- 
ciples laid down in this book. 

7. Practice thinning fruit if the time is right and over- 
bearing trees are at hand. 



The Pome Fruits. 39 



Section 2. — The Pome Fruits 

41. The pome fruits are so called from the structure of 
tbeir fruit, which, is a pome, i. e., a fleshy fruit containing 
two or more carpels^ in a pulpy expansion ot the flower 
stem or calyx tube. The principal cultivated pome fruits 
are the apple {Pyrus tnalus), the imported crab apple [Pyrus 
haccata)^ the pear {Pyrus communis), the sand pear [Pyrus 
Sinensis), and the quince {Pyrus Cydonia or Cydonia vul- 
garis). These are trees or large shrubs, with firm, fine- 
grained wood. The flower buds, which are nearly or quite 
as resistant to cold as the leaf buds, are always terminal 
on the part that bears them, hence, if the part continues 
to live, it must branch farther back. This explains the 
crooked and scraggy fruiting wood of these trees. The 
fruitfulness of the pome fruits is commonly less regular 
than that of the stone fruits, where the flower buds of the 
latter are not injured in winter. 

Productive varieties of the pome fruits often bear exces- 
sive crops alternate years, and little or no crops the inter- 
vening years. A frost sometimes cuts off the crop over a 
considerable section of the country, and as a result of the 
rest thus enforced upon the trees, the orchards bear abund- 
antly the following season, in consequence of which the 
more productive varieties fail to bear the next year. The 
third season these trees will again bear abundantly, and 
the fourth year the crop will fail, and so on. This has 
given rise to the opinion held by some people that these 
fruits bear only on the odd or even year, as the case may 

> A carpel is one of the parts of a compound seed vesseL 



40 Zessons in Fruit Growing. 

be. Thorougli thinning of tlie fruit of the more product- 
ive varieties, when they produce excessively, tends to make 
them annually productive. 

A — THE APPLE 

42. The apple is generally regarded as the most import- 
ant fruit of temperate climates. Owing to the wide varia- 
tion in season of maturity of its numerous varieties, it is 
available in its fresh state throughout the year, and it 
serves a great variety of uses in domestic economy. The 
adaptability of the fruit to transportation, and the product- 
iveness and longevity of the trees in favorable localities, 
make it the cheapest and the most widely known and used 
of the temperate fruits. 

43. Cultural ran§:e. The apple is commercially culti- 
vated in southeast Canada from Nova Scotia to Lake 
Huron, and in southwest Canada in British Columbia. In 
the United States it is more or less grown north of the 
35th parallel, except in the arid regions of the west, and 
north of the iSth parallel in the Mississippi valley and 
Great Lakes region. The hardier crab apples succeed some- 
what farther north than the common apple. 

44. Fruiting: habit and pruning. Figure 5 shows a twig 
of a bearing apple tree as it appears in winter and early 
spring. Let us suppose that the part from the apex to A 
grew during the spring and summer of 1900, a bud form- 
ing in the axil of each leaf. Then the part from A to B, 
except the part immediately below the upper buds, grew 
in 1899, and the part below B except the short branches, 
grew in 1898. These branches grew in 1899, forming 
flower buds F, which opened in the spring of 1900, and as 



The Apple. 



41 



-^.l 



B 



.^i' 



these flowers were terminal on the branches 
that bore them, the latter could grow no 
farther. They would have perished back to 
the main stem after maturing their fruit, 
had there not been a bud beneath the 
flower to continue the growth (41). 

It is evident from the figure that the 
buds that expanded into flowers in the 
spring of 1900 were two years old, i. e., 
they flowered at the beginning of the third 
year of their life. Their development as 
axillary buds commenced in the spring of 
1898. Buds in the apple do not often flower 
younger than this. The lateral buds which 
do not push into shoots may form embryo 
flowers the second summer of their life; 
they often do not, however, until the third 
or fourth summer. If the tree is not pruned 
to admit sufiicient light, many of the buds 
will never form flowers. 

The further development of the fruit 
branches (spurs) is shown in Figs. 6 and 7. 
In the right part of Fig. 7 is shown a fruit 
spur that pushed into growth as the result 
of too severe pruning of the main branch 
beyond it. This spur was changed to a 
shoot, and might not have fruited again. 

Since the fruit spur in the apple must 
branch every time it flowers, each flower- 
ing brings its buds in less direct connection 
with the axis of growth, hence fruit on the 
older spurs will receive less water than that 

Fig. 5. Twig from bearing apple tree. 



42 



Lessons in Fruit Growing. 



on the younger, and so will commonly attain less size (34), 
It is probably wise, therefore, to prune off the oldest fruit 
spurs, as the trees reach full fruiting age. Old trees that 
have lost their vigor from the formation of too many fruit 
spurs may be renovated, if still sound, by pruning that is 




Fig. 6". Fruit spurs of apple showing successive stages of development, 

sufficiently severe to start new growth from the older- 
branches. 

Age at which fruiting begins. Apple trees begin to fruit 
at from two to ten years from the time they are planted 



Tlie A]j;ple. 



43 



in the orcliard, the interval depending mucli upon the va- 
riety, and to a less degree upon soil and other conditions. 
The Oldenhurg, Wealthy and Haas are among the earlier 
varieties to fruit, while the Golden Russet, Northern Spy 
and Yellow Bellflower commence fruiting late. 

45. Soil for the apple. While the apple tree is adapted 
to a considerable variety of soils, it has generally proved 

most productive and 
enduring on deep, 
rich, well-drained clay 
loams. The presence 
of a considerable quan- 
tity of lime in the soil 
has been regarded as 
important by many 
writers. 

46. Propagation. In 
the temperate zones, 
varieties of the apple 
are propagated almost 
exclusively by graft- 
ing' on stocks grown 
from seed, and the seed 
used should be taken 
from hardy and vigor- 

An old and much branched fruit spur quS treCS. If Seedlino"S 
that has resumed growth, becoming a shoot, is ^^® grOWn irom SeedS 

shown at the right. f rom cider-mill pomace 

made from mixed apples, only the most vigorous ones 
should be grafted. The seedlings are usually taken up the 

» Budding, by which many apple trees are propagated in some sections, is on© 
form of grafting. For detailed directions for grafting, see " Principles of Plant 
Culture." 




Fig. 7. 
of the apple is shown at the left, 



44: Lessons m Fruit Growing. 

autumn after the seed was sown and heeled-in, or packed 
in boxes with fine moss. They may then be buried in a 
well-drained place in the open ground, or stored in a cool 
cellar. They may be root-grafted the following winter, or 
planted out in nursery rows the following spring, to be 
budded during the summer or top-worked at a later time. 

Root-grafting with long cions, on short sections of root, 
is generally preferred to budding in climates having hot 
and dry summers and severe winters. Under these condi- 
tions the root grafts are more likely to grow than inserted 
buds, while the stock, being placed rather deep in the soil, 
is less subject to winter-killing if tender, than when worked 
above ground. Budding, on the other hand, is more prac- 
ticed in mild climates, because it is regarded a cheaper 
mode of propagation. 

Dwarf stocks for the apple. The apple tree may be 
dwarfed by working it upon what is known as Paradise 
and Doucin stocks. These are dwarf varieties of Pyrus 
malus that are native to parts of Europe. The former pro- 
duces the shorter and earlier-bearing trees. Dwarf trees 
are valuable for testing new varieties and for growing upon 
small grounds, and are much admired by some amateurs. 
They usually begin to bear in two or three years after 
grafting, and at five or six years of age often yield a bushel 
or more per tree. Trees worked on Paradise stock are so 
dwarf that the highest fruits may usually be picked by 
hand from the ground. Dwarf apple trees have not been 
found profitable in America for commercial orchards. 

4t. Age and distance for planting:. Apple trees are 
commonly planted m the orchard in the northern states, 
at three years from the root graft or budded nursery tree. 
Some rapid-growing varieties become large enough at two 



The Apple, 45 

years from the graft or bud while slower-growing sorts are 
preferably allowed to grow four years in the nursery. Old 
and overgrown nursery trees should be avoided (23). 

Standard apple trees expected to attain full size should 
be planted not less than 30 feet apart and in localities in 
which the trees grow with much vigor, they should be 
planted not less than 35 feet apart. 

48. Harmful parasites. The principal insects that in- 
jure the fruit of the apple in America are the codlin of 
codling moth, the apple maggot and the apple curculio; 
those that injure the foliage are the tent caterpillar, plant 
lice, the canker worms and leaf-rollers; those that injure 
the trunk or branches are the apple-tree borers, the oyster- 
shell bark-louse and the San Jose scale; and the one most 
injurious to the roots is the woolly aphis. Of the fungi, 
the apple scab and bitter rot affect the fruit, the fire blight 
and the apple scab affect the foliage and young twigs, and 
the apple canker affects the branches. These are consid- 
ered in their order. 

49. The codling moth, [Carpocapsa pomonella). This in- 
sect causes so-called wormy fruit in the apple and pear 
(Fig. 8). It is one of the most serious of fruit insects, as 
fruits infested by its larvae have little value either for mar- 
ket or home use. In seasons of small crops, nearly the en- 
tire yield of fruit is often damaged by this insect unless 
preventive measures are used. It was imported into this 
country from Europe and is now found in nearly all parts 
of the United States and Canada east of the Rocky moun- 
tains. 

The perfect insect is a moth that flies mostly at night 
(g. Fig. 8). The first brood of moths appear about the time 
the blossoms open, when the female deposits her eggs, usu- 



46 



Xessons in Fruit Growing. 



ally in the calyx of the young- froit hut sometimes on other 
parts of the fruit or upon the leaves. The egg- hatches in 
a few days and the larva proceeds to eat a passage to the 
core of the young fruit, pushing its castings out behind it 
and enlarging the channel from time to time. The reddish- 
brown castings usually adhere more or less about the en- 
trance of the opening. The larva (e) feeds on the interior 
of the fruit during three or four weeks or until it attains 
full growth, when it 
leaves the fruit and 
seeks a secluded place 
for pupation, which it 
usually finds under the 
rough bark or in cracks 
and crevices about the 
trunk of the tree. The 
injured fruit generally 
falls from the tree be- 
fore, or soon after the 
larva leaves it. In 
about tw o weeks 

(about mid-summer) - Fig. 8, Codling moth, and its work in the ap- 
, pie. A, burrow of larva; b, point where larva 

the moth escapes, after entered; d, chrysaUs: e, full-grown larva (the 
■1 • 1 •, I •! apple "worm"); f, moth with wings folded; 

wnicn It deposits eggs g^ ^^^-^ ^^^^ yfiags spread; i, cocoon. (After 

for a second brood. Riiey.) 

The early and later broods are not sharply defined, but 
overlap more or less, so that the larvae of the early brood 
may not all have left the fruits at the time some of the sec- 
ond brood are hatched. The larvae of the second brood be- 
come full-grown during autumn or early winter and often 
do not escape from the fruit until after it is harvested. They 
may remain in the fruit during a considerable part of the 




The Aj)ple. ' 47 

winter, often escaping in tlie cellar or storage house where 
they spin their cocoons in concealed places, from which 
the moth emerges the following spring. 

Preventive measures. Spraying the trees shortly after 
the petals fall and while the calyx of the young fruit faces 
upward, with water containing Paris green at the rate of 
one pound to 200 gallons destroys many of the young 
larves as they attempt to eat their way into the fruit. As 
the egg-laying period for the first brood continues several 
days, and as the young fruit expands rapidl}' at this pe- 
riod, a second spraying should be given 7 to 10 days after 
the first, and if rains are frequent, a third spraying after a 
like interval is advisable. 

In addition to spraying, bands about 6 inches wide of 
burlap, old carpet, other cloth fabric, or of building paper, 
should be placed about the trunk of the trees to entrap the 
larvse as they search for a place to transform. The bands 
should be put on about June 1st, and should be wound 
once or twice about the trunk, when the end may be fast- 
ened with a tack or cord. The bands should be taken off 
every 8 or 10 days until September, and alMarvas or cfirys- 
alids found beneath them should be destroyed, after which 
the bands should be replaced. They should also be re- 
moved once after the later apples are harvested. The co- 
coons are often torn open in removing the band, permitting 
tbe larva to drop to the ground. The larva should then 
be killed so that it will not form another cocoon. Finally, 
all fruit that falls from damage inflicted by the codling- 
moth larva should be promptly destroyed. Hogs or sheep in 
the orchard aid greatly in this work. In the absence of these, 
the fallen fruit should be gathered daily and fed to stock 
or otherwise disposed of to destroy the larvae they contain. 



48 Lessons in Fruit Gf owing. 

50. The apple niagfgot [Tnjpeta pomonella\ where it 
abounds, is often more destructive than the codling moth, 
as it renders the fruit worthless for any purpose except 
stock feed. It is most destructive to apples grown on 
sandy soil, in cultivated orchards, and to early varieties. 
It does not always betray its presence in the fruit by con- 
spicuous external marks, hence infested fruit is often mar- 
keted, and thus the insect is spread to new localities. 
Fortunately it does not spread readily from tree to tree, 
and hence is not likely to become generally disseminated. 

The infested fruits generally ripen and fall prematurely 
and the larvae do not escape until the fruit has fallen, hence 
by promptly destroying all fallen infested fruits, this insect 
may be kept in subjection. Hogs and sheep in the orchard 
greatly aid this work. 

51, The apple curculio {Anthonomus quadrigibbus), in- 
jures apples greatly in some localities by stinging and eat- 
ing the fruit, making it ill-shaped and under-sized. The 
beetle feeds considerably upon the young fruit, making, 
however, only a puncture through the skin. As the larva 
escapes from the fruit while the latter is attached to the 
tree, it cannot be destroyed by hogs or sheep. Jarring the 
trees over sheets, as de- 
scribed for the plum curcu- 
lio, (99) and spraying as de- 
scribed for the codling "^ Z. ^^ T 



moth (i9) are most likely to 
prove effective treatments. 
52. The tent caterpillar 

{CUsiocampa Americana), 

forms the conspicuous tent- Fig. 9. Apple curcuUo. a, back view; 
T1 , J.1 1 lb, side view, both magnified; Datural 

like nests upon the branches size shown at left. (After lUley.) 




The Apple. 



49 



of apple ti"ees in May or June, from wliicli tlie numerous cat- 
erpillars sally to forage on the neighboring foliage (Fig. 10). 
The nests should be destroyed before fully formed by rub- 
bing them off in the morning or evening with a pole, bear- 

^'^i>^^.c-v^'?P^SiV ^ swab of cloth wet 

with kerosene to 
kill the young 
caterpillars. The 
rather conspicu- 
ous ^gg clusters 
(Fig. 11), which 
are deposited on 
the young limbs, 
may be destroyed 
while the trees 
are leafless. 

S3, Plant lice 
{Aphidae). These 
troublesome in- 
sects injure the 
foliage of the ap- 
ple and of nearly 
all other fruit 
trees by sucking 
the juices from 
the leaves. They chiefly infest the lower side of the leaves 
and are most troublesome in early summer. It is diflBcult 
to apply an insecticide to the lower surface of the leaves, 
and the insects being more or less protected by the curling 
of the leaves about them, are not easily controlled after the 
foliage has fully expanded. The buds should be examined 




Fig. 10. Tent caterpillar. A, side view; b, back 
view; c, egg cluster with gummy covering removed; 
d, cocoon. (After Saunders.) 



50 Lessons in Fruit Growing. 

when tbey are beginning to open in the spring, and if in- 
fested with numerous pLant lice, the tree should be sprayed 
with kerosene emulsion.^ The leaves being upright are then 
easily reached with the emulsion and a small amount is suffi- 
cient to wet all of the buds. Should the insects become 
numerous later, repeat the spraying, applying it with force, 
taking care to wet the under side of the leaves as far as 
possible. The operator should stand near the trunk of the 
tree and direct the stream upward and outward. 

54. Canker worms {Anisopterix). Two species of 
canker worm infest apple trees, but both are amen- 
able to the same treatment. The eggs hatch about 
the time the leaf buds expand and the young cater- 
pillars, which are of the class known as "measuring 
worms," feed on the foliage. They are readily de- 
stroyed by spraying with water containing Paris 
green at the rate of a pound to 200 gallons. 

55. Leaf rollers {Caccecia). One or more species of 
leaf rollers feed on the foliage of the apple tree in ^^" ' 
spring and early summer. These are often very injurious, 
sometimes almost defoliating neglected trees. The treat- 
ments recommended for the codling moth (49)will usually 
prevent serious damage from these insects. 

56. Various other insects attack the foliage of the apple, 
but fortunately most of these are active early in the season, 
when they may be destroyed by the spring sprayings. A 
few, however, need attention at other times. Late in sum- 
mer the caterpillars of cecropia moths [Samia); of the yel- 

' For directions for making and applying the keroseoe emulsion, see " Prin- 
ciples of Plant Culture." 

2 Egg cluster of tent caterpillar attached to twig of apple tree. (After Saiin- 
ders.) 



The A2?pie. 



51 



2ow-necked apple-tree caterpillar {Datana minisfra), and 
of tlie red-hnuiped apple-tree caterpillar {Oedemasia con- 
■cinna), often do much damage, especially to young trees, 
by consuming the foliage. They may be destroyed by 
spraying with water containing Paris green, as heretofore 
directed. Durino- winter the cocoons of the cecropia moths 
and of the apple-leaf crumpler [Physis indigenella), are 
conspicuous on the branches, and should be picked off and 
destroyed. 

St. The round-headed apple-tree borer {Saperda Candida) 
injures the trunks of the apple, pear and quince. The per- 
iect insect is an attractive beetle (c. Fig. 12). The female 






e 

Fig. 12. Round-headed apple-tree borer. A, larva as it appears in tree; 
b, chrysalis (both slightly enlarged); c, mature insect (natural size). 
(After Saunders.) 

• deposits eggs late in June and during July on the bark of 
the tree near the ground. These hatch within two weeks, 
when the larvse at once begin to eat their way through the 
bark. The insect is thought to remain three years within 
the trunk before the beetle emerges. The first season is 
supposed to be passed in the sap wood and inner bark, 
where the larva forms shallow cavities an inch or more in 
diameter, over which the bark often becomes dark-colored 
and cracked. The next season, the larva continues to eat 



52 Lessons in Fruit Growing. 

t]ie sap wood, to whicli it does great damage, and if several 
borers chance to be in the same tree, they may completely 
girdle it. The third season, the larva (a) eats into the 
heart wood, and the following spring escapes as a perfect 
beetle. 

Preventive measures. Examine the trunks of the trees 
near the ground late in August or early in September, when 
the presence of the young larva may often be detected by 
discoloration of the bark over it. It may then be cut out 
with a pocket knife and destroyed. Later, little heaps of 
brown castings on the ground may betray the presence of 
the insect, which may then often be destroyed by probing 
the burrow with a stout wire or a flexible twig, or by cut- 
ting through the bark at the upper end of the chamber 
and pouring in scalding water. 

Soft soap, reduced to the consistency of thick paint with 
a strong solution of washing soda, applied to the whole 
trunk early in June, often prevents egg deposit. If ap- 
plied on the morning of a warm day, the coating soon dries 
and is not easily washed ofiP. The application should be re- 
newed in the early part of July. Removing the earth two 
or three inches deep about the base of the trunk, and paint- 
ing the bark thus exposed heavily with common paint is 
said to keep out the larvse. This preventive should be used 
only on trees of considerable size. Inclosing the trunk 
with wire mosquito netting is also said to be effectual. 

58. The flat-headed apple-tree borer {Chrysobothris 
femorata) is also very troublesome to trees of the apple, 
pear and quince. This insect may infest any part of the 
trunk and sometimes even the larger branches. Its mature 
form is a beetle, three-eighths to half an inch in length 
(d, Fig. 13). Its eggs are deposited under the loose bark 



The Apple. 



53 



scales, or witliin cracks and crevices of tlie bark. These 
soon hatcli and the 3"oung larva eats its way into the sap 
wood, where it excavates broad channels. A single speci- 
men will sometimes girdle a small tree. The insect is sup- 
posed to pass its transformations in one year. 

Preventive measures. The trees should be examined in 
early fall for this insect, when the young larva, if present, 
may often be detected by discoloration of the bark, by a 
flattened or dried appearance of the bark over its burrow, 
or by the presence of sawdust-like castings adhering to the 
bark. The larva (a, Fig. 13) may be cut out with a knife, 
or the burrow may be probed with a 
wire or flexible twig. Coating the 
bark with the soap mixture previ- 
ously recommended (57) aids in pre- 
venting the entrance of the larva. 

The flat-headed borer is most likely 
to attack trees of which the bark 
has already been injured by sun-scald 
or otherwise. 
59. The oyster-shell bark-louse 
Fig. 13. Flat-headed apple- {Mijtilaspis j^omoriim) (Fig. 14) af- 
tree borer. A, larva as it ap- £qq^^ ^\^q apple, pear and quince 

pears in tree; b, chrysalis; „ ., ,i , , ,i tt -^ i 

d, perfect msect. (After ^"1^3 throughout northern United 
Saunders.) States and Canada. It is most inju- 

rious to unthrifty trees. The scales, which cover the eggs 
of the insect, are about one-sixth of an inch long. They 
are colored like the bark and are shaped somewhat like an 
oyster shell. They are mostly attached to the smooth bark 
of the younger branches and are sometimes so numerous as 
to almost conceal the bark. The eggs hatch late in May 
or early in June, when the lice, which are so small as to 




54 



Lessons in Fruit Growing. 



appear to tlie unaided eye as mere specks, leave the scales 
and scatter themselves over the twigs and foliage of the 
tree, subsisting on its juices. Later they largely congre- 
gate about the base of the side shoots of the terminal twigs, 
where they gradually secrete the scale beneath which the 
eggs are deposited, and remain until the following spring. 

Preventive measures. Potash dissolves the scales, and 
kerosene destroys both the eggs and the lice. 
By spraying before the leaves appear in spring 
with a kerosene emulsion containing an abund- 
ance of soap, the great majority of the eggs 
will be destroyed. Watch should be kept dur- 
ing the latter part of spring for the appearance 
of the young lice. If these hatch in large num- 
bers a second spraying with the same material 
should be given. Unthrifty trees should be 
restored to vigor by improved cultivation, ma- 
nuring or stimulative pruning, as is most 
needed. Often the restoration of vigor re- 
moves the greater part of the lice. Young trees 
infested with bark-lice should not be planted 
unless treated with the kerosene emulsion. 

60. Tlie San Jose scale {Aspidiotus perniciosus) (Fig. 15) 
is a minute scale insect destructive to nearly all fruit trees 
and plants grown in the United States and Canada. On 
much-infested branches, the scales appear as a grayish, 
slightly roughened, scurvy deposit which, when crashed 
by scraping, yields a yellowish, oily liquid. Affected twigs 
examined with a good hand lens during summer show 
orange-colored larvae running about, and snow-white young 



Fig. 14. J 



« Oyster-shell-bark louse as it appears on twig of apple. CAfter Saunders.) 



The Ap]-)le. 



55 



scales interspersed with brown or blackened mature scales. 
The larvae are produced in successive generations from 
spring until autumn frost, and multiply with extreme ra- 
pidity. The San Jose scale is chiefly disseminated by nur- 
sery stock. (24) 



f 3 




a. 

Fig. 15. San Jose scale. A, natural size; b, enlarged. (After Howard, TJ. S. 
Department of Agriculture.) 

Preventive measures. Infested nursery stock is best freed 
from the San Jose scale by fumigating it in close rooms, 



5G 



Lessons in Fruit Growing. 



with hydroc3Mnic gas.* Infested orchard trees may be 
sprayed in winter with a solution formed by dissolving two 
pounds of whale-oil soap in one gallon of hot water; or 
with undiluted crude petroleum of a specific gravity of not 
less than 43° Beaurae. A single spraying is not likely to 
destroy all of the insects on a badly infested tree, hence 
it is often necessary to repeat the treatment the following 
winter. Summer sprayings may be made with strong to- 
bacco water or a mechanical emulsion containing ten per 
cent, of kerosene. 

61. The woolly-louse or woolly-aphis of the apple (.Sc/?/- 
zoneura lanigera) (Fig. IG) is injurious in two forms, in 
one form attacking the trunk of 
the tree, and in the other the 
roots. Both forms infest apple 
trees of all ages. In spring the 
presence of the insect is indicated 
by small bluish-white specks re- 
sembling mold, about the base of 
the shoots growing from the 
trunk, about the base of the trunk 
itself, or about recent wounds in 
the bark. Later, the cottony coat- 
ing of the insect becomes more dis- 
tinct and adheres to the fingers when touched. In autumn, 
the insects commonly cluster about the axils of the leaves 
toward the end of the twigs, sometimes appearing in such 
numbers as to make the tree look as if whitewashed. The 
lice derive their nourishment from the sap of the tree and 

' The method of preparing this gas is described in " Principles of Plant Cul- 
ture." The trees are exposed 45 minutes to the gas formed by mixing 1 fluid 
ounce each of sulfuric acid and fused potassium cyanide (98 per cent, pure) with 
two fluid ounces of water for each 135 cubic feet of space in the fumigating room. 




Fig. 16. Woolly-louse of ap- 
ple. (Cut from U. S. Depart- 
m^ent of Agricultm'e.) 



The Apple. 57 

ths numerous punctures thus made cause wart-like ex- 
crescences OD the bark. In cases of severe attack the leaves 
turn yellow and drop and sometimes the trees die. 

The winged females, which appear in autumn, fly from 
tree to tree to deposit eggs for another generation the fol- 
lowing spring. The lice can endure considerable frost, 
and in mild climates pass the winter about the base of in- 
fested trees. This form of the insect is readily destroyed 
by two thorough sprayings with strong kerosene emulsion, 
or if only the trunk of the tree is infested, by applying the 
emulsion with a whitewash brush to this part. 

The root-inhabiting form is a more serious pest where it 
abounds, than the aerial form. Infested trees are indicated 
by pale or yellowish, 'scanty foliage and feeble growth. 
Unless relieved, they sooner or later die or blow over by 
the wind. By removing earth from the roots near the 
base of the trunk, the lice will be found in clusters about 
and between the roots, which have grown knotty and dis- 
torted from the continual drain upon their juices by the 
lice. The roots thus injured soon perish and decay, and 
the tree, if large, is blown down by the first hard wind. 

Tobacco dust used about the roots is a specific for the 
root form of the woolly-aphis. Infested orchard trees may 
be cleared from it by removing the earth about their roots 
to the depth of 4 inches, and to a distance of 2 feet from 
the trunk, and scattering 5 or 6 pounds of tobacco dust 
over the bottom of this excavation, after which the dirt 
should be replaced. In much infested regions 2 or 3 pounds 
of tobacco dust should be applied each spring, to each or- 
chard tree, as above directed, to prevent attack; nursery 
apple trees should have a liberal application of tobacco 
dust about their roots each spring, removing some of the 



58 JLessons in Fruit Growing. 

soil as above described, and in planting orcliard trees, to- 
bacco dust should be freely used about the roots. Ap- 
ple seedlings and root grafts should be planted suffi- 
ciently deep so that they stand in a shallow trench, whicli 
should be filled with powdered tobacco or tobacco dust 
lightly covered with earth. Newly-cleared land should be 
cultivated tvfo years before planting with apple trees, to- 
rid it of the woolly- aphis. 

62. The fire blight ' {Micrococcus amylovorus) is a bac- 
terial disease that affects all of the pome fruits. The spores 
of the bacteria enter at the tips of growing shoots, or 
through the open flowers or wounds made by insects, and 
the disease works its way backward, destroying the tissues 
as it proceeds, causing the foliage and wood to assume a 
blackish-brown color and to emit a characteristic odor. It 
affects the pear and quince more than the apple, as it pro- 
gresses much faster in these fruits. The more succulent 
the tissue of the young growth, the more likely is it to be- 
come infested with fire blight and the more rapidly the 
disease progresses. 

Preventive measures. Since over-succulent tissue favors 
infection by fire blight, stimulants to excessive growth, as 
thorough cultivation and heavy nitrogenous manuring 
should be avoided. Free circulation of air about the tree 
should be encouraged. Infested shoots should be cut off 
and burned as soon as discovered. They should be cut six 
or eight inches below the point of visible infection, as the 
dead tissue marks the points to which the disease has fin- 
ished its work, rather thaii commenced it. 

63. The scab fungus (Fusicladium) affects the apple and 
pear, causing blackish, scabby spots upon the fruit which 

J Known also as " pear blight," " apple blight," or simply " bUght." 



The Ajpple. 



59 




it also reduces in size and disfigures in form and appear- 
ance (Fig. l7). It also affects the foliage and younger 

twigs, and sometimes the 
flowers, even destroying the 
fruit spurs in severe cases. 

This disease is propa- 
gated from spores blown 
about by the wind, which 
germinate under favorable 
conditions of warmth and 
moisture. It is most de- 
structive in warm and wet 
weather, and in locations 
Fig. 17. Apples affected with scab (the that favor a moist atmOS- 
dark spots). (After Lamson-Scribner.) phere, as in densely-planted 

orchards or on branches that hang near the ground. 

Preventive measures. The free circulation of air among 
the trees and branches of the orchard promotes a dry at- 
mosphere and tends to prevent germination of the spores 
of the scab fungus, and to retard the progress of the dis- 
ease. Spraying the foliage with Bordeaux mixture greatly 
reduces damage from the scab in wet seasons. The first 
spraying should be given before the blossoms open, to be 
followed by a second after the petals fall, and a third about 
a fortnight later. In very wet seasons, sprayings should 
be more frequent. Good culture, proper manuring and 
pruning do much to reduce damage from the scab fungus. 

64. Bitter rot, also called "ripe rot" and "bird's-eye 
rot " {Glceosporium fructigenum) is a fungous disease that 
affects the pome fruits and the grape, especially the apple, 
on which it is often very destructive in south and south- 
west United States. It occurs as the fruit approaches 



60 Lessons in Fruit Orowing. 

maturity and may continue to develop during storage 
(Fig. 18). It appears as a small, circular spot of pale-brown- 
ish tissue, slightly sunken, which increases by concentric 




Fig. 18. Apple affected with bitter rot. (After Alwood.) 

areas. The affected part, which usually has a bitter taste, 
becomes softened as the decay extends into the tissues. 

Preventive measures. Spraying as the fruit approaches 
maturity, with ammoniacal solution of copper carbonate, 
or a solution of potassium sulfide,* tends to prevent this 
disease. Varieties specially subject to it should be dis- 
carded. 

65. The apple canker, which is caused by the fungus 
Sphceropsis malorum, is common and often very destruct- 
ive in orchards in the older apple-growing regions of the 
United States. In badly infested trees, the disease is indi- 
cated by dark and enlarged sections of the larger limbs, on 
which the bark is thickened and much roughened. These 
diseased sections are oiten six or more feet long. A por- 

*For formulae for these spraying compounds, see " Principles of Plant Cul- 
ture." 



The A^jple. CI 

tion of the wood is often laid bare, but the dead bark also 
frequently clings tenaciously to the decaying wood. The 
progress of the disease may be marked by numerous pits 
or scars, which are usually circular in form and may be 
outlined by two or more concentric lines. The fungus ex- 
tends down from diseased branches, or from canker spots at 
the forks of the tree, destroying large areas of bark and 
exposing the wood in ugly wounds in aggravated cases. A 
majority of cankers start from some mechanical injury. 

The presence of the fungus in a newly infected limb is 
indicated by a small area of discolored bark, which extends 
slowly in all directions as the fungus grows. 

Preventive measures. "Cankered limbs should be cut out 
and burned wherever practicable. Thorough spraying with 
Bordeaux mixture at the times recommended for the scab 
fungus (63) tends to prevent new infection. Wounds in the 
bark should be promptly painted, or coated with grafting 
wax. Scraping the loose bark from the trunk and larger 
branches of bearing trees, following with a coat of white- 
wash tends to prevent the spread of the disease. 

66. Picking and packing apples. Apples are fit to pick 
when the seeds have assumed a uniform brown color. The 
earlier varieties, when picked for a distant market, may be 
gathered a little before this stage. As a rule, early pick- 
ing tends to long keeping. 

Several devices for picking are on the market, but these 
are of little use except for reaching apples that cannot be 
reached by hand. 

Apples are commonly packed in barrels holding two and 
three-fourths to three bushels. In some states, the size of 
the package is regulated by law. Choice apples of 6arly 
varieties are sometimes marketed in bushel or one-half 



62 



Lessons in Fruit Grovjing. 



bushel baskets and occasionally in boxes holding about a 
bushel (Fig. 19). When packed in barrels, the first two or 
three tiers of apples put in the barrel are com.\ixov\y faced, i. e., 
placed in regular rows with the stem end downward. The 




Fig. 19. A bushel box for marketing apples and pears (size 10x12x18 inches, 
Inside). 

faced apples should be of uniform size and should represent 
the average quality of the fruit in the barrel; they should 
be placed in concentric rings beginning at the outside of 
the barrel, and those of the second tier should be placed in 
the depressions between those of the first tier. When 
apples are packed for shipment across the ocean, it is well 
to face the entire barrel, as this ensures close packing and 
tends to careful assorting. When packed for home trade, 
only one end of the barrel is commonly faced. The un- 
faced apples may be put in with a small, swing-handled 
basket, that can be turned over in the barrel, and the barrel 
should be shaken a little as each basketful is emptied. The 
barrel may be filled nearly even full from the basket, and 
the last apples put in should project about an inch above 
the top of the barrel, but if the contents of the whole barrel 
are faced, the last tier should project but little above the 
top, as they are packed closer when all are faced than when 



The Apple. 



63 



tlie greater part are poured in from the basket. The head 
of the barrel is then placed on the apples and the upper 
hoops driven up sufficiently so that the head may be 
pressed down to its place. The press is then applied as 
shown in Fig. 20, taking care that all parts of the head 
settle evenly. It is often necessary to 
change the bearing point of the press 
to accomplish this. The hoops should 
next be driven doAvn to their proper 
place, when the head should be se- 
curely nailed by driving small nails 
through the uppermost hoop at such 
an angle that the}^ will enter the head 
near its surface. For long transpor- 
tation, it is well to tack a slender strip 
of wood inside the chine at each end of 
the barrel, nailing downward into the 
staves and against the head so as to 
give additional support to the ends of 
the latter. The head that formed the bottom of the barrel 
in filling is generally stenciled, and is expected to be re- 
moved when the barrel is opened, but the dealer often opens 
the unstenciled head, to satisfy himself as to the quality of 
the packing. 

6^. Influence of growth conditions on the character of 
apples. The season of maturity of apples, and the length 
of time they keep, depend much upon the climate in which 
they are grown. The winter apples of northern United 
States are autumn apples when grown farther south. ■ 
Some winter apples of the northern states are early autumn 
apples when grown in Georgia. Many excellent northern 
varieties have little value farther south, and vice versa. 




Press for packing 



64: Lessons in Fruit Growing. 

It is said that the flavor and keeping qualities of apples 
are considerably affected by the soil on which they are 
grown, and that apples grown on strong, heavy soils are 
finer in flavor, higher in specific gravity, and possess better 
keeping quality than those grown on lighter soils. Apples 
grown on healthy trees keep better than those grown on 
feeble, poorly-fed or parasite-injured trees. 

68. The crab apple. The fruit of the crab apple is smaller, 
firmer in flesh, and is borne more in clusters than that of 
the common apple; the foliage and shoots are smoother 
and the shoots and fruit spurs are more slender. The tree 
is more resistant to the cold than that of the common 
apple, which adapts it to severe climates. The fruit is 
chiefly used for jelly, cider and preserves. Two species of 
the crab apple are native to the United States, but the one 
commonly cultivated here was introduced from Europe. 
The latter hybridizes freely with the common apple; some 
valuable hybrids have thus been obtained. 

The culture of the crab apple does not differ from that 
of the common apple. 

SUMMAEY OF THE PRECEDING SECTION" 

1. The apple commonly fruits on short branches (spurs) 
from three or four-year-old wood. After the spurs have 
fruited once, they may fruit annually or biennially there- 
after (44). 

2. Old fruit spurs of the apple commonly produce small 
fruit because the nourishing sap must pass through so 
many branches. It is probably best to prune off the older 
spurs (44). 

3. The apple tree has generally proved most productive 
and enduring on deep, rich, well-drained clay loams (45). 



The Apple, 65 

4. The apple is mostly propagated by budding or root- 
grafting on apple seedlings. Root-grafting with long cions 
is preferred in severe climates (46). 

5. Apple trees are commonly planted in tbe orchard at 
three years old from the bud or root graft. If expected to 
attain full size, they should not be set less than 30 to 35 feet 
apart. 

6. The codling moth, canker worms and leaf rollers 
may be held in check by timely and thorough sprayings 
with water containing Paris green at the rate of 1 pound 
to 200 gallons. For the first-named insect, bands of burlap 
placed about the trees in summer are helpful by enticing 
the larvae to pupate where; the}' may be easily destroyed; 
gathering and feeding out the fallen infested fruit is also 
helpful (49, 54, 55). 

7. The apple-tree borers may be held in check by prob- 
ing their burrows with a flexible twig, by washing the 
trunk with the soap-soda solution or by painting the trunk 
thickly just at the surface of the ground with common 
paint (57, 58). 

8. The oyster-shell bark-louse may be controlled by keep- 
ing the trees in a vigorous condition, or by spraying the 
infested parts with a kerosene emulsion containing an 
abundance of soap (59). 

9. The San Jose scale may be removed from nursery 
trees by fumigating them in a close room with hydrocy- 
anic gas. Orchard trees may usually be freed from it by 
spraying them during winter with a solution of whale-oil 
soap or with crude petroleum (60). 

10. The aerial form of the woolly-louse may be controlled 
by spraying with a strong kerosene emulsion, and the root 
form by the free use of tobacco dust about the roots (61). 

5 



QQ Lessons in Fruit Growing. 

11. The fire Might may be held in check in part by 
avoiding stimulants to rapid growth and by burning in- 
fested shoots (62), 

12. The apple scab may be largely controlled by thor- 
ough spraying with Bordeaux mixture (63). 

13. The bitter rot may be held in check by spraying, as 
the fruit approaches maturity, with ammoniacal solution 
of copper carbonate or potassium sulfide solution (64). 

14. The apple canker may be in part controlled by cut- 
ting off and burning infested limbs, by spraying with Bor- 
deaux mixture, by covering wounds with paint or grafting 
wax and by whitewashing the trunk and larger branches 
(65). 

15. Apples are commonly marketed in barrels, baskets 
or boxes. When packed in barrels, the first two or three 
layers put in are " faced " and the filled barrel is moder- 
ately pressed {^^). 

16. The season of maturity, keeping period and quality 
of apples depend much upon the environment in which they 
are grown (67). 

17. The crab apple resists cold better than the common 
apple, but it is adapted only for culinary purposes and 
cider (68). 

SUGGESTIO]S"S FOE LABOEATOET WOEK 

1. Study Fig. 7, and ascertain the minimum age of the 
oldest part of the much-branched fruit spur, referring to 
Fig. 6 for the method. 

2. Study fruit spurs from bearing apple trees, ascertain- 
ing the number of times each has blossomed, and the prob- 
able age of the different parts. 

3. If the students have not had lessons in grafting, give 



The Pear. 67 

them practice in root- and top-grafting, and budding the 
apple, providing the time of year is suitable. 

4. Study any of the insects and diseases named as harm- 
ful to the apple, of which samples can be found, and apply 
the preventive methods so far as practicable. 

5. Practice in picking, assorting and barreling apples if 
the time of year admits. 

6. Study the methods of assorting and packing apples as 
illustrated in your local market, and if possible, compare 
the quality of the same variety from different sources. 

B — THE PEAR 

69. The pear. The finer varieties of the pear are among 
"the most delicious of fruits. Perhaps no other fruit has 
been more improved by cultivation. While the finer pears 
may excel the apple in edible quality, the pear is of less 
commercial and domestic importance than the apple, owing 
to its narrower cultural range. 

to. Cultural rangfe. The pear is nearly as resistant to 
cold as the apple, but owing to its great susceptibility to 
fire blight (62), it succeeds well only in special locations. 
It is grown on a commercial scale chiefly in the part of the 
CFnited States lying east of the Mississippi Valley, and on 
the Pacific coast. It does not succeed well in the Southern 
States, and is little grown in Canada. 

Tl. Soils and sites. Since fire-blight is the chief ob- 
stacle to the culture of the pear within its climatic range, 
and since this disease is favored by the conditions that favor 
rapid growth (62), the soil and site for the pear orchard 
should be such as do not stimulate rapid growth in warm 
weather. A well-drained clay soil of moderate fertility, 
and a cool and airy location, should therefore be selected 
for the pear orchard. 



68 



Lessons in Fruit Growing. 



t2. Fruiting habit. The fruiting habit of the pear is 
verj'- similar to that of the apple. The growth of the fruit 
spurs is apt to be a little more rapid (Fig. 21), and the buds 
are perhaps more likely to form 
flowers the first year of their life 
than in case of the apple. The 
tree comes into bearing at about 
the same age as the apple tree, 
but as it seldom attains so large a 
size, individual trees are not often 
as productive as apple trees of the 
same age. 

t3. Soil treatment and prun- 
ing. To avoid fire blight (62) the 
tillage of the standard ^ pear or- 
chard should be less thorough 
than that recommended for or- 
chards in general (29). Nitroge- 
nous cover crops, and manures 
rich in nitrogen, should com- 
monly be avoided, but potash and 
phosphoric acid may be freely 
used. 

The pruning of the standard 
pear tree should be very similar ^^ Book.") 
to that recommended for the apple (44, 34), but it is espe- 
cially important to avoid over-pruning. 

t4. Propagation of the pear. The best stock for stand- 
ard pear trees is seedlings of their own species. The seeds 
should be separated from the pulp, stratified in sand and 

1 The word standard, when appUed to a fruit tree, means that the tree is ex- 
pected to attain its normal height; i. e., that it has not been dwarfed by graft- 
ing it on dwarf stock (75). 




Fig. 21. Old fruit spur of pear. 
(Adapted from Bailey's "Prun- 



The Pear. 69 

buried a few inches deep, in a well-drained place during 
winter, to be taken uj? and planted early in spring. The 
soil for the seed bed should be moist, deep and rich, and 
should contain a large amount of humus. Lime and ashes 
are thought to be espepially useful. 

The seeds should be sown thinly in drills, one to two feet 
apart, and the ground between the drills should be kept 
clean and well cultivated to avoid leaf blight (82). 

Pear seedlings make few lateral roots the first season and 
hence are likely to be heaved out by freezing of the soil 
during winter. To prevent this, the ground between the 
drills may be heavily mulched with leaves in autumn. 
Mice may be kept out by surrounding the bed with a ridge 
of fresh earth a foot or more high. 

Another method of preserving the seedlings is to bury 
them late in autumn in a cellar, or in a well-drained spot 
in the open ground. 

Grafting the year. Root grafting is successful with the 
pear only when large, entire and branching roots are used, 
and when the grafts are inserted above the crown. Bud- 
ding the stocks the second year of their growth is more 
commonly practiced than root grafting. The pear may be 
top- grafted with considerable facility, but in climates of 
severe winters the cions should always be cut in autumn. 

t5. Dwarf pears. The pear is sometimes worked on the 
French quince. Trees thus grown are much dwarfed, come 
very early into bearing and thrive on some soils where pear 
stocks fail. Sometimes the quality of the fruit is improved 
by grafting the pear in this way. Different varieties of 
the pear do not grow with equal facility on the quince; a 
few kinds can be worked upon it successfully only by graft- 
ing upon a pear that is alreacjy growing upon a quince. 



70 Lessons in Fruit Growing^ 

The size of the fruit is generally increased by working on the 
quince, but it sometimes appears to be rendered more gritty 
in texture. A few varieties, as the Angouleme, are so much 
improved when grown on the quince that they are seldom 
grown otherwise. 

In planting dwarf pears, the quince stock is commonly 
placed a little below the surface to evade the round-headed 
borer (57), which often attacks the quince, but rarely the 
pear. The trees are commonly pruned to a conical form, 
6 or 7 feet in diameter at the base and 10 or 12 feet in 
height, the lower branches reaching nearly to the ground. 
Dwarf pear trees grow less rapidly than those grafted on 
pear roots. They are therefore less susceptible to blight (62), 
and may be given more thorough cultivation and more 
frequent manuring. Dwarf pear trees are also more se- 
verely pruned than standards. The new growth is annu- 
ally cut back to within 4 to 8 buds of the base, and the 
branches are well thinned out. 

t6. Distance for planling. Standard pear trees are usu- 
ally planted 16 to 20 feet apart each way. Dwarf tree& 
may be planted 10 to 12 feet apart. 

XX» When to pick pears. The stage of maturity suit- 
able for picking pears is commonly indicated by a slight 
change in color of the skin and by the readiness with which 
the stem separates from the tree. As a rule, the pear is 
considered fit to pick when the stem detaches from the tree 
on lifting the fruit until the blossom end is on a level with 
the stem. Unlike most other fruits, the quality of the 
pear is improved by picking before it begins to soften. 
The finer sorts, however, as the Bartlett and Seckel, suffer 
less when allowed to ripen on the tree than poorer ones. 
Summer pears usually color better when ripened in the 



The Pear, 71 

dark. Bureau drawers are excellent for this purpose. In 
the absence of drawers, the pears may be placed on shelves 
between layers of woolen cloth. 

Winter pears should not be picked until damage from 
frost is feared. 

The quality of ripe pears depends considerably upon the 
environment in which they are grown. A variety possess- 
ing the highest quality when grown on a favorable soil, 
with good culture, may be greatly inferior or worthless 
grown on uncongenial soil, with improper treatment. 

t8. Packing: the pear for market. Pears are packed for 
market in baskets, boxes, kegs and barrels, the smaller 
packages being used for the finer qualities. Many pears are 
shipped from California to the east in shallow boxes made 
of thin lumber, in which the pears, individually wrapped in 
tissue paper, are closely packed, and the box is given no 
ventilation. When packed in kegs or barrels, the same 
rules are observed as in packing apples, except that pears 
should be pressed less hard. Pears are generally "faced" 
with the calyx end down {p'o). Pears should always be 
packed sufficiently immature so that they may arrive at 
their destination before softening. 

^9. Insects and diseases affecting: the pear. The pear is 
harassed by numerous parasites, but except those men- 
tioned as common to the pome fruits (49-63), only a few 
are sufficiently destructive to occasion special anxiety. 

80. The pear-tree psylla [Ps^jUa jpyri) punctures the 
young twigs near the axils of the leaves in spring, causing 
a copious exudation of sap that is often so abundant as to 
drop upon the foliage below, and sometimes to run down 
the branches to the ground. In severe attacks, almost all 
of the foliage will be affected, and the tree loses a consider- 



72 



Lessons in Fruit Growing. 



able part of its leaves. The insect is so minute as to be 
scarcely visible without a magnifying glass. Flies and ants 
gather about in large numbers to sip the sweet sap and are 
often mistaken for the cause of the mischief. 

Preventive measures. Spraying the trees with kerosene 
emulsion on the first appearance of the trouble generally 
prevents serious damage. 

81. The pear-tree slug {SeJandriacerasi) is a soft, slimy, 
blackish or olive-brown, snail-like insect (Fig. 22) that often 
attacks the foliage of the pear in summer, 
and sometimes almost defoliates the trees 
before it is discovered. The insect has two 
broods, the first of which commonly ap- 
pears about the middle of June. 

Preventive measures. As this insect feeds 
upon the upper surface of the leaves, it is 
readily destroyed by spraying with kero- 
sene emulsion, or with water containing 
fresh hellebore powder at the rate of a 
heaping teaspoonful to three gallons. Trees 
not bearing fruit may be sprayed with 
water containing Paris green or London 
purple. Air-slacked lime dusted over the 
foliage is also said to be effectual. 

The fire blight has been considered in treating the apple 
(62). The only special precaution to be observed in the 
case of the pear is to prevent the growth of fruit spurs on 
the larger branches of the tree. The disease more often 
affects the fruit spurs of the pear than of other fruits, 
hence preventing the growth of these on the main branches 
tends to restrict the disease to the smaller branches, which 
may be cut off with less damage to the tree. 




Fig. 22.1 



> Pear-tree slug. (After Saunders.) 



The Quince. 73 

82. The leaf bligfllt {Entomosporium macidatum) is a 
fungous disease that is often very destructive to young 
pear seedlings. Its first indication is the dotting of the 
foliage with reddish-brown spots, followed by the brown- 
ing and falling of the leaves during summer, which causes 
premature cessation of growth, and in severe cases totally 
■destroys the seedlings. In older trees the disease may also 
affect the stems and fruit. 

This disease should not be confounded with the fire 
blight (62). 

Preventive measures. The Bordeaux mixture, applied as 
soon as the first leaves have expanded, and at intervals of 
■2 to 4 weeks until August 1st, usually prevents this dis- 
ease. The treatments should be most frequent in damp 
weather. 

C — THE QUINCE 

83. The quince is an irregular-growing, shallow-rooted 
tree or large shrub, attaining a height of 10 or 12 feet at 
maturity. The fruit, which is firm and acid, and resem- 
bles that of the pear in size and shape, is chiefly used for 
preserves, marmalade, jelly, sauce, and for flavoring sauces 
made from other fruits. The varieties, which are not nu- 
merous, mostly mature their fruit in autumn, and the fruit 
keeps until cold weather. 

While the quince is not an important fruit commer- 
cially, quince orchards in favorable locations, when well 
■cared for, have generally proved profltable. 

84. Cultural rangfe. The quince is less resistant to cold 
than the apple or pear, and is about equally subject with 
the pear to fire blight and leaf blight (62, 82). Its cultural 
range is therefore narrower than that of the pear. It can- 
not endure the winters of the northern Mississippi Valley, 



74: Lessons in Fruit Growing. 

and is commercially grown in Canada only in tlife most 
favored districts. 

85, Propagation. The quince is commonly propagated 
by layers or cuttings.^ When propagated as stocks on 
which to work the pear, mound-layering is usually practiced,- 
but when grown for fruit trees, young shoots are com- 
monly bent down in spring and buried, with the exception 
of a few buds at the extremity. When these have well 
started, all are cut away but the best shoot, which is trained 
upright to a stake. In two or three years the tree may be- 
removed for planting in its permanent place. 

The quince is also extensively propagated by cuttings of 
the young wood, which may be made and planted in autumn. 
It is also propagated by root cuttings, by budding upon 
seedlings of the Angers quince, and by root grafting upon 
apple seedlings. In the latter case the apple root is often 
rem oved when the tree is transplanted in the nursery or to 
the orchard. 

86. Fruiting: habit. The flowers of the quince are pro- 
duced on short branches, that grow in spring from small 
buds terminating 
spurs borne on wood 
two years old or older 
(Fig. 23). The flow- 
ers develop to a less 
extent the season be- 
fore their expansion 
than those of most pig 33. Fruit spur of quince. (Adapted froro* 
other tree fruits. The Bailey's " Pruning Book.") 

trees begin fruiting about 2 years after planting and reach 
full bearing in 10 or 12 years. 

1 Detailed directions for propagating plants from layers and cuttings are given 
in "Principles of Plant Culture." 




The Quince. 75 

87. Soil and culture methods. The quince appears to 
thrive best on a heavy, retentive clay loam, well-drained. 
On lighter soils the trees are rarely long-lived. The trees 
are commonly planted about 15 feefc apart each way, three- 
year-old trees being preferred for planting. The soil of the 
quince orchard should not be deeply plowed and should 
always be protected in winter with a cover crop. The vig- 
orous shoots of bearing trees may be profitably cut back 
more or less each winter or early spring to promote the de- 
velopment of fruit spurs. 

88. Insect enemies. The fruit of the quince is injured 
by a curculio {Conotrachelus cratcegi — Fig. 24) of which 

the larva develops within the fruit. 
The eggs are laid in the young fruit 
during June, and the beetle may be 
caught and destroyed in the manner 
prescribed for the plum curculio (99). 
The round-headed apple-tree borer 
(57) attacks the trunk and the pear- 
FiG. 24. Quince curculio, tree slug (81) attacks the foliage, 
back and side view. Mucii 89. Fungous dlscascs. The fire 

enlarged. (After Saunders.) ^^.^^^^ ^g^) and leaf blight (82) at- 

tack the foliage of the quince and are its most serious 
fungous enemies. A rust {Eoesfelia aurantiaca) sometimes 
blotches the fruit and may envelop it in an orange-colored, 
fringe-like growth. Bordeaux mixture, used as directed 
for leaf blight, generally prevents this disease. 

Section 3. — The Stone or Drupe Fruits. 

90. The principal cultivated stone fruits are the plum, 
cherry, peach, apricot and nectarine. Of these the plum 
and cherry include several different botanical species. All 
are small trees or shrubs that exude more or less gum from 




76 



Lessons in Fruit Or owing. 



wounds, and flower more or less on wood of tlie previous 
season's growth. The flower buds are generally lateral, 
the flowers forming the first year of their life. The fruit 
is a tender-fleshed, juicy, often highly-flavored drupe,^ and 
generally keeps but a short time after maturity. The trees 
are naturally more fruitful than the pome fruits (41). 

91. The soil best adapted to the stone fruits is somewhat 
lighter, warmer and drier than that which best suits the 
pome fruits, and it should be abundantly fertile to give best 
results. Certain species of the plum succeed admirably on 
a moist, well-drained clay loam. 

92. Cultivation. The stone fruits are not subject to the 
fire blight, and therefore respond more favorably to high 
cultivation than the pome fruits. Seeding the ground about 
the trees to grass, or cropping it for the crop's sake, is less 
admissible than with the pome fruits. Cultivation early in 
the season, vdth a cover crop sown about midsummer, should 
be the rule. In orchards too closely planted to permit cul- 
tivation, the ground has sometimes been mulched with ex- 
cellent results. 

93. Picking and packing. The stone fruits do not carry 
well if allowed to ripen on the 
tree, but fortunately they ac- 
quire most of their quality if 
picked a little hard. They 
should not be picked until full 
grown, and as a rule, not earlier 
than is necessary to insure that 
they reach their destination 
before becoming soft. Plums 
and cherries should notj as a rule, be picked until fully 
colored. 




Fig. 25. Climax frait basket. This 
is also made with a raised, slatted 
cover. 



' A drupe is a fleshy fruit containing a single seed with a bony covering, 
seed with its covering is called the pit or *' stone." 



The 



The Plum. 77 

The stone fruits are commonly packed in the Climax 
basket (Fig. 25), in the half-bushel market basket, or occa- 
sionally in larger baskets. Early and especially choice 
varieties of the plum and cherry are sometimes marketed 
in berry boxes. 

A — THE PLUM 

94. The cultivated plums of the United States and Can- 
ada include the following species : 

1st. The European plum and its American seedlings 
(Prunus domestica). The more common blue and yellow 
plums of the markets and the dried prunes are of this spe- 
cies. It is the choicest dessert plum. The tree bears large, 
firm, thick, wrinkled, coarsely-toothed leaves which are 
mostly downy beneath ; the shoots are usually downy, and 
the flowers are large, as compared with those of other spe- 
cies. The fruit is mostly globular-pointed or oblong, with a 
large and slightly roughened or pitted stone. This species 
was introduced into America by the early settlers and is 
more extensively cultivated than any other. In the north- 
ern Mississippi valley its flower buds are not hardy, and its 
trunk is subject to sun-scald. 

2nd. The Japanese plum and its American seedlings 
(Prunus trifiora). This species was widely disseminated 
in North America from 1890 to 1900, and the showy, round- 
ish, pointed, firm-fleshed, small-stoned, red, yellow or pur- 
ple fruit is becoming common in our markets. The flowers 
are small, clustered, and open earlier than those of most 
other species. The tree is of rapid growth with usually 
long, straight, spreading branches, and smooth, obovate, 
finely-toothed, prominently-pointed leaves. The fruit is 
generally inferior in quality, but the excellence of a few 
varieties gives promise of great improvement for the spa- 



T8 LessoQis in Fruit Growing. 

cies. Its flower buds are not hardier than those of the 
European plum, and its trunk is more subject to sun-scald. 
The early opening of its flowers renders it comparatively 
unfruitful in many localities where its flower buds can en- 
dure the winter. 

3d. The northern wild plum and its cultivated seedlings 
(Prunus Americana) is native along streams and in copses 
from west New England to Colorado and Texas. The tree 
is spreading, small and often thorny; the leaves are large, 
obovate, abruptly pointed, coarsely toothed, conspicuously 
veined and are never glossy. The fruit is yellow, more or less 
overlaid with dull red or purple, with a tough and glaucous 
skin, firm or crisp, sweet flesh and a distinctly margined 
stone. A division of this species known as the Nigra group 
(Waugh) is distinguished by its large leaves and large, often 
early-expanding flowers, oblong, oval, often strongly-flat- 
tened fruit with a large and much compressed stone. 

This species is now considerably grown for fruit in the 
northern Mississippi valley, where some extensive orchards 
of it exist. The fruit is becoming popular in the north- 
western markets, and is mainly used for culinary purposes. 
The trees or flower buds are rarely damaged by cold in 
winter. The pistils are often destroyed by a return of cold 
weather after a premature warm period in spring, though 
rarely to an extent to destroy the crop. Improved varie- 
ties of this species are rapidly appearing, the finest of which 
already rival in favor those of the European and Japanese 
plums. The harshness of the skin and stone, so noticeable 
in the wild fruit, disappear under good culture. 

4th. The Wild-Goose plum and allied forms {Primus hor- 
tulana) is a strong, spreading, rapid-growing tree with 
smooth, straight twigs and a peach-like habit, narrow, 
thin, smooth, usually shining, closely-toothed leaves, and 



The Plum. 79 

roundish, briglit-red or yellow, juicy, thin-skinned fruit, 
with a strongly clinging, thick, small, pointed stone. A 
division known as the Miner grouy (Bailey) is distin- 
guished by duller, thicker, wider, more veiny leaves and 
by a smoother stone. 

This species, which is wild in parts of the Mississippi 
valley, is regarded by some botanists as a hybrid between 
Pi'unus Americana and Prunus Chicasa. The fruit is less 
crisp and sweet than that of Prunus Americana, which, 
with its more clinging stone, makes it less desirable for des- 
sert use; the flower buds are also less hardy, which renders 
the species unproductive in the northern Mississippi valley. 

5th. The Chickasaw plum (Prunus Chicasa or P. angus- 
tifolia) is a slender tree, with small, narrow, shining, 
trough-like leaves, and small, glossy, red or yellow, dotted 
fruits, with thin skin and soft, juicy flesh closely clinging 
to the small, broad, roughish stone. It is wild from Dela- 
ware, south and west to east Kansas and Texas. The 
flower buds are often destroyed in winter in the northern 
Mississippi valley. 

The fruit of this species is decidedly smaller and less 
highly flavored than that oi Prunus Americana, and is suit- 
able only for culinary uses, for which it is especially desir- 
able. 

The trees of the different species of plum are hard.y 
throughout the United States and Southern Canada, when 
their trunks are prevented from sun-scald. 

Hybrid plums. A number of hybrids have been artifl- 
cially produced between certain of the above species, espe- 
cially between the Japanese plum and others. The European 
plum apparently resists hybridization more than the other 
species. As the hybrids increase in number, it will doubt- 



80 



Lessons in Fruit Growing. 



less become more and more difficult to refer tne varieties 
to their proper species. 

95. Fruiting habit. The plums fruit mostly on spurs, 
but as the flower buds are mainly lateral, the spurs do not 
branch as in the pome fruits, but continue to grow from 
their terminal bud, unless this also flowers or dies from lack 
of light, when the spur perishes, becoming a thorn-like 
branch. On the young shoots, a flower bud often forms on 
either side of the buds in the axil of a leaf, but flowers from 
these do not often form fruits. The spur-buds commonly 
flower at the beginning of their second year (Fig. 26). 

The trees usually commence bear- 
ing at two to three years after plant- 
ing in the orchard. 

96. Pruning:. The plum requires 
little pruning except such as is needed 
for symmetry and to maintain a free, 
open, head. The trees of some varie- 
ties incline to split down, hence the 
new growth should be kept well cut 
back, and forks in the stem should 
be carefully avoided. Many varieties 
of Prunus Americana tend to produce 
very dense heads, which should be 
thinned out by removing the smaller 
branches. This tends to prevent over- 
bearing, and to increase the size of 

the iruit. Pjq. 26. Fruiting brancli 

97. Picking; plums. Plums of the of European plum. (Adapted 
-n 1 1 ^J r. ■ 1 J ^,-4-l, from BaUey's Pruning Book.) 

European class should be picked with 

the stems, but the stems of most native varieties detach as 

the fruit ripens. Plums should be handled as little as pos- 




The Plum,. 



81 



sible to avoid removing the delicate bloom that gives an 
appearance of freshness. 

Plums do not often ripen uniformly enough to permit 
all to be picked from the tree at one picking, and the fruit 
generally becomes too ripe for marketing if allowed to drop. 
It is usually necessary to pick over the trees two or more 
times, the color of the fruit indicating which ones are to 
be picked. 

98. Parasitic enemies. The chief parasitic enemies of 
the plum are the plum curculio, plum gouger and aphidae 
(53) among insects, and the "fruit rot," black knot, 
and " plum pockets " or " bladder plums " among fungi. 
These are treated in order. 

99. The plum curculio {Cx}notrachelus nenuphar) (Fig. 
27 c.) is the chief insect enemy of the plum and cherry. It 

is native to America and for- 
merly bred in the wild plums. 
On the introduction of the 
European plum, it attacked 
this fruit so vigorously, until 
preventive measures were dis- 
covered, as to threaten its ex- 
termination from culture. 
The perfect insect is a 
c ^^^y rough, grayish or blackish 

Fig. 27. Showing plum curculio, and beetle, about one-fiftll of an 

stung fruit; a, larva; 6, chrysalis; • ^^ ^q^^. The females begin 
c, beetle; d, stung plum, showing =_ 

crescent-shaped mark. Natural size to lay their eggS in the green 

indicated by short Unes. (After Saun- £^,^-|. ^^^^ ^fj^gj, ^]^g petals fall. 

^^^^ The length of the egg-laying 

period is from two to five weeks, and depends much upon 
the weather, it being prolonged in cold and wet springs. 
6 




82 Lessons in Fruit Growing. 

In the plum and some other fruits, the female exposes her 
work by a crescent-shaped mark (d) about the point of 
egg deposit. On the hatching of the egg, the larva feeds 
upon the pulp of the fruit until it attains its growth, when 
it leaves the fruit and descends into the ground 4 to 6 
inches for transformation. More or less gum generally 
exudes from the wounds made in the egg-laying, and in 
the plum, the fruit usually drops before maturity; but in 
cold and backward springs the egg-laying may be so far 
retarded that the larvae are found in the ripe fruit. The 
plum curculio is single brooded, and the beetle passes the 
winter under the loose bark of trees or in similar places. 

Preventive measures. Early in the season the beetle 
feeds somewhat on the foliage, and hence may be destroyed 
to a slight extent by spraying the tree with water contain- 
ing an arsenite, but the number of beetles that may be thus 
destroyed is not always sufficient to repay spraying for this 
purpose alone. The so called "jarring process" is more 
effectual. In this, advantage is taken of the stiffness in 
the beetles caused by cold, to jar them from the tree upon 
sheet-covered frames, where they may be killed. The trees 
are gone over, usually in the early morning, with the cur- 
culio catcher j^Fig. 28), which is run beneath the tree so. that 
the trunk is near the 
center of the sheet. 
A stub, formed by 
sawing off a small 
branch of the tree, is 

then struck two or ii^la^Curciiiio catcher, 

three vigorous blows 

with a cushion-covered mallet, when the curculios, with 
other insects, drop on the sheet, whence they are swept into 




The Plum. . 83 

a box beneath tbe center of tbe sheet to be later destroyed 
by kerosene. In case of the plum, all fruits that fall as the 
result of infection by larvae should also be promptly gath- 
ered and destroyed by burning or otherwise. 

100, The plum gouger {Coccotorus scutellaris) is some- 
times as destructive to the native plums as the curculio, 
for which it is often mistaken. It is much larger than the 
latter and appears in spring at about the same time. Un- 
like the curculio, the female does not mark her place of 
egg deposit with a crescent-shaped mark, and the larva 
feeds on the kernel of the pit. Fortunately the plum 
gouger is destroyed by the treatment recommended for the 
plum curculio (99). 

The flat-headed apple-tree horer (58) often injures the 
trunk of the plum when the bark has been damaged by 
sun-scald or otherwise. 

101. The fruit rot. Certain varieties of nearly all of 
the stone fruits are subject to disastrous rotting on the 
trees at the time of maturit}', especially if the weather 
at this season is warm and wet. The rotting is the direct 
result of a fungous disease and may be in part prevented. 
The fungus {Monilia fructigena) attacks the flowers, 
leaves, and fruit spurs, as well as the fruits. It makes its 
appearance on the flowers about the time the petals fall, 
and may proceed from the flower to its stem, destroying 
that also. The dead flowers usually remain on the tree 3 
or 4 weeks, when, if the weather is wet, they are distrib- 
uted to other parts of the tree, to which they spread the 
disease. If the weather at the time of fruit maturity should 
be warm and rainy, the fungus in the fruit may progress 
with astonishing rapidity, causing total destruction of a 
large crop. The decayed fruits, if undisturbed, may re- 
main on the tree until the following spring. 



84: Lessons in Fruit Growing. 

Preventive measures. The disease gains entrance to 
the flowers through spores that live from year to year. 
Since every fruit destroyed by the fungus matures millions 
of spores, every decayed fruit that is permitted to hang on 
the tree until the following spring is a source of infection 
to the next crop. As soon as the ripe fruits that escape 
the rot have been gathered, all decayed ones, whether on 
the tree or on the ground, should be collected and destroyed 
by burning or burying. It is wise, also, to rake up and 
burn the fallen leaves in autumn, and thus destroy all ad- 
herent spores of the fungus. Spraying the trees with Bor- 
deaux mixture in early spring, taking care to thoroughly 
wet the trunk and branches will tend to prevent the ger- 
mination of spores on the tree, and thus lessen the chances 
of infection of the flowers. Spraying the fruit at the ap- 
proach of the ripening period with a solution of potassium 
sulfide, at the rate of one-half ounce to a gallon of water, 
also tends to prevent the disease. Early picking of the 
fruit, provided it is picked quite dry, usually prevents seri- 
ous damage from rotting. 

Planting and pruning the trees with reference to secur- 
ing abundant circulation of air among the leaves and fruit, 
and thinning the fruits so that no two specimens hang in 
contact, also tends to reduce the rot. 

102. The black knot of the plum and cherry {Plow- 
rightia [Sphoeria] morbosa) is a fungous disease that attacks 
the younger branches, causing abnormal, dark-colored 
swellings of the wood, and sooner or later destroying the 
affected parts. 

Preventive measures. Spraying with Bordeaux mixture 
has been found to reduce the number of affected branches, 
but where the disease has secured a foothold, the branches 
should be promptly cut off and burned. 



The Plum. 85 

103. Plum pockets or bladder plums. The plums native 
to America are often attacked by a fungus {Exoascus [Ta- 
phrind] Prmii), that causes the young fruits to swell up in a 
conspicuous and abnormal manner, assuming at first a gray 
color which later changes to brown or black. Affected fruits 
are destroyed and finally fall. The disease also affects the 
leaves and young stems, causingv similar distortions. It 
does not, however, appear to spread much from tree to tree, 
and is mostly confined to a few varieties. 

Preventive measures. Watch should be kept for the ap- 
pearance of the disease in spring and early summer, and all 
affected fruits and leaves should be destroyed. Spraying 
trees inclined to the disease with Bordeaux mixture as soon 
as the foliage appears in spring will doubtless tend to pre- 
vent the attack. Varieties found specially susceptible to 
the disease should be discarded. 

The foliage of the plum is also sometimes injured by the 
shot-hole fungus (130). 

104. Propa§:atioll of the plum. Various stocks are used 
in propagating the plum. In localities where the Domes- 
tica species succeeds, the Myrobolan stock {Prunus myro- 
holana) is much used and is generally satisfactory except on 
light or otherwise unfavorable soils. 

Seedlings of Prunus angustifolia are much used in the 
southern states, but have the objection of suckering from 
the roots. The Marianna plum, which is supposed to be 
of the Myrobolan class, and which grows readily from cut- 
tings in the south, is also used to some extent. The most 
satisfactory stock for the plum, at least in the northern 
states, is undoubtedly seedlings of the Americana plum. 
The peach was at one time considerably used as a stock for 
the plum, but has now been nearly abandoned. 



86 Lessons in Fruit Growing. 

Growing seedlings. Pits for producing stocks should be 
gathered from vigorous, healthy plum trees. They should 
be removed from the pulp and stratified in sand, or the 
fruits may be mashed in plenty of sand, and the sand con- 
taining the pits should be buried a few inches deep in the 
soil, in a well-drained place, until early the following springy 
when the pits should be planted not over three-fourths inch 
deep, 3 or 4 inches apart, in rows 3^ or 4 feet apart. 

To prevent washing-out of the pits, the planted row& 
may be covered with narrow boards until the young plants^ 
appear, when the boards should be promptly removed. 
After the plants have started, the soil about them and be- 
tween the rows sljould be well cultivated throughout the 
season. 

Grafting. The young trees should be large enough for 
budding by the latter part of summer. If the seedlings are 
intended for crown-grafting, cions may be cut the follow- 
ing spring, after frost has left the ground, but before 
growth has started in the stocks or cions, and inserted at 
once in the crown of the seedling. Root-grafting the plum 
is not generally satisfactory. The trees may be top-grafted 
with fair success, as described for crown-grafting, or with 
autumn-cut cions, tightly packed in dry leaves and kept 
over winter in a cool cellar. 

Propagation from root cuttings. The plum is readily 
propagated from root cuttings taken from trees that are 
growing " on their own roots," i. e., that have not been 
grafted. The shallow roots may be cut into three-inch 
pieces in autumn and packed in boxes with alternate lay- 
ers of moist sand, and the boxes may be stored over winter 
in a cool cellar. As early in spring as the soil can be 
worked, the cuttings are planted upright, with their dis- 
tal end about three-fourths of an inch below the surface. 



The Cherry. 87 

105. Soil and planting. The best soil for the plum is a 
moderatel3"-heavy clay loam, though some varieties succeed 
admirably on rather light soils. A suitable distance for 
planting the trees is 20 to 25 feet apart, depending some- 
what upon the vigor of the variety. 

The varieties of the American species of the plum are 
largely impotent with their own pollen — a fact that greatly 
emphasizes the importance of mingling the varieties in 
planting (14). 

B— THE CHEERY 

106. The cultivated cherries of the United States and 
Canada include the following species: 

(a) Prunus avium, the bird cherry of Europe, the sweet 
cherry of North America, or the English cherry, to 
which the classes known as Mazzards, Hearts, BigaiTcaus 
and Dukes belong, is characterized by the usually tall, up- 
right growth and pyramidal form of the tree. This has 
large, vigorous and straight young branches, with soft, 
coarsely- or doubly-toothed, pointed leaves, which are usu- 
ally pubescent beneath. The flowers are developed at the 
same time with the leaves, and the usually sweet or bitter 
fruit is round-ovoid or somewhat heart-shaped and of vari- 
ous colors. The cultural range of this species is rather 
limited and it is not hardy in northern United States nor 
in Canada except in favored districts. The fruit is used 
for dessert, canning and pickling. 

(b) Prunus cerasiis, the red, sour, or pie cherry, which 
is a smaller tree than the above and includes the Ama- 
relle and Morello classes, has small, irregular and thickly- 
growing branches, with obovate lance-ovate, serrate leaves, 
rather large flowers on shortish pedicels that somewhat 



■88 



Lessons, in Fruit Growing. 



precede tlie leaves, and a decidedly acid, 
roundish, commonly red fruit. This spe- 
cies is hardier than the last, and is grown 
.with some success in the colder parts of 
the United States. Its flower buds are, 
however, often destroyed in winter in the 
-northern Mississippi Valley. The fruit is 
chiefly used for pies and canning. 

(c) Primus Besseyii, the dwarf or sand 
cherry, is a low straggling shrub which 
has recently been cultivated in an amateur 
way. Its fruit more resembles that of the 
sweet than the sour cherry, and its vari- 
ability suggests that it may be susceptible 
to improvement. 

lot. Fruiting: habit. The fruit of the 
cherry is mostly borne from lateral buds 
on short spurs from wood of the preceding 
year (Fig, 29), i. e., the buds that form in 
the leaf axils of the young shoots grow out 
into short branches (spurs) the next year, 
the lateral buds on these spurs forming 
flowers that expand the following spring. 
These spurs may persist two or more years 
by growth from their terminal buds, which 
seldom flower, but they commonly perish 
in a year or two through lack of light. 
Sometimes the lower buds on the young 
shoots form flowers the first season. 

108. Soil for the cherry. The cherry 
thrives host on a dry, sandy or gravelly 
loam. It is especially subject to damage 
from over-wet and poorly-drained soils. 



I9Q0 



Ib^X 



Fig. 29.' 



' Fruiting wood of sour cherry. F, flower buds; L, leaf buds. 



Tlie Cherry. 89 

109. Propagation. Seedings of the bird cherry are much 
used for stocks, both for its own species and for the varie- 
ties of Primus cerasus. 

The mahaleb cherry {Primus mahaleb) is also used to 
produce a somewhat dwarfed cherry, and possesses the ad- 
vantage of thriving on heavy clay ground. Neither of 
these stocks is entirely successful in the northern Mississippi 
valley, but the mahaleb appears to be the hardier of the two. 

The seeds may be treated as directed for the plum (104), 
but must be planted very shallow, and unless the soil is 
rather light, they should be covered with leaf mold, fine 
sand or thoroughly decayed manure, to avoid the formation 
of a crust over them. The seed-lings are not often large 
enough to bud until the second season. They should com- 
monly be taken up the fall after sowing and buried in well- 
drained soil, or stored in a cool, moist cellar until the fol-_ 
lowing spring. Budding the cherry is practicable only 
with thrifty stocks and. well-matured buds. The most fa- 
vorable time for budding is just as the terminal buds on 
the shoots commence to form. It is said to be important 
to cut out with the bud a section of wood reaching about 
■one- third through the shoot. 

Grafting the cherry otherwise than by budding is rarely 
successful unless performed very early in the spring, before 
frost has left the ground. 

110, Pruningf. The cherry requires only sufiScient prun- 
ing to form a symmetrical head and to admit sunlight to 
the fruit spurs. In countries of severe winters it is impor- 
tant to head the trees low and to protect the trunk against 
sun-scald. 

HI. Picking and marketing. The mature fruit of the 
■cherry is much subject to destruction by birds. To prevent 
this, it is often necessary to gather the fruit before it 



90 Lessons in Fruit Growing. 

softens. The trees of choice varieties are sometimes pro- 
tected against birds by inclosing them with cotton netting. 

The cherry is commonly marketed in the Climax basket- 
(Fig. 25), in half-bushel market baskets, or in berry boxes^ 
(212). Choice varieties are often shipped from the Pacific 
states, closely packed in unventilated boxes, in layers sep- 
arated by tissue paper. 

Insects and diseases. The plum curculio (99) and the 
pear-tree slug (81) are the most serious insect enemies of 
the cherry. The fruit-rot fungus (101) is often destructive.^ 
A species of Exoascus (103) often affects the sand cherry. 

C — THE PEACH 

112. Hie peach [Prunus persica) is one of the most de- 
licious tree fruits of temperate climates. 

The trees are more tender and of shorter duration than 
those of most other temperate fruits. Peach orchards often 
decline after bearing 2 or 3 good crops, but under more fa- 
vorable conditions they continue 20 to 25 years. Lack of 
proper culture has undoubtedly ruined many American 
peach orchards. 

The cultivated peaches are commonly referred to a single- 
species, but at least two botanical varieties are recognized, 
viz., var. Icevis or necturiana, the nectarine, of which the fruit 
is smooth and usually smaller than that of the common 
peach and var. platycarpa, the flat or Peen-to peach, of 
which the fruit is much flattened endwise. The nectarine 
is not grown commercially in North America except to a 
limited extent in the Pacific states. The Peen-to peach is- 
grown to some extent in Florida and on the Gulf coast. 

113. Cultural range. The most extensive commercial 
peach-growing regions of the United States are in New 



The Peach. 91 

Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, Georgia, Michigan, Connecti- 
cut, New York, Colorado and the Pacific States. The crop 
is quite uncertain throughout most of the Mississippi Val- 
ley and Gulf States owing to the sensitiveness of the flower 
buds to warm weather in winter, which causes them to 
swell at the least provocation. Under ordinary circum- 
stances the dormant flower buds are destroyed by a tem- 
perature of 12 to 15 degrees below zero, F., though they 
have sometimes endured a considerably lower temperature. 
When slightly swelled by untimely warm weather, they 
are often cut off at a temperature of only 5 or 6 degrees 
below zero. 

A careful study of local conditions might extend the 
culture of the peach to many new sections of small extent. 

It is grown commercially to some extent in the most 
favored regions of Canada. 

114. Fruiting habit. The flower buds of the peach are 
formed rather late in the growing season, on either side of 
the buds, in the axils of the leaves on the young shoots. 
Rarely, the axillary bud also flowers. The flowers are 
single and open before the leaves expand. .The trees often 
begin fruiting at three years of age. 

115, Propagfation. The peach is more precocious than 
most other tree fruits. Stocks may be budded the same 
season the pits are planted, and in the southern states, 
the young trees may be planted in the orchard the follow- 
ing spring. In the north, trees grown one year in the 
nursery after budding are preferred. 

The peach is commonly budded upon its own seedlings. 
For stocks, only the seeds of hardy and late varieties, from 
orchards not subject to yellows (121), should be used. The 
pits may be kept in a cellar without stratification until 
winter, when they should be stratified and exposed to freez- 



92 Lessons in Fruit Growing. 

ing and thawing. About the time the frost leaves the 
ground, they are often taken up and cracked by hand, 
placing them on the end of a wooden block and strik- 
ing each a gentle blow on the edge with a hammer. The 
kernels are then taken out of the shells and planted at 
once, 1 or 2 inches deep, and 6 or 8 inches apart, in. rows 
sufficiently separated to admit of horse cultivation. To 
secure a good stand of plants, the kernels are often sprouted 
before planting by mixing them with moist sand and leaf 
mold and spreading thinlj'^ where exposed to the sun's rays, 
the sprouted pits being planted with a trowel. If the 
ground cannot be prepared early, germination may be re- 
tarded by burying the uncracked stones a foot or two deep, 
until wanted. 

Vacancies in the rows may be filled from a seedbed when 
the plants are very young. If the weather is dry, the ground 
should be watered. 

The pits may be planted without cracking by mixing the 
fresh stones with moist saud and spreading the mixture in 
a layer not over 6 inches thick on the ground, covering 
this with a few inches of partially rotted straw or coarse 
manure to prevent drjnng. This covering should be re- 
moved at the beginning of winter to favor freezing of the 
pits. In spring, a large portion of the pits will be found 
sprouting. The sprouted pits are then carefully picked 
put and planted at once as above directed. In a few days 
another portion will be found sprouted which may be 
picked out and planted as before, and this assorting and 
planting process should continue as long as the pits con- 
tinue to sprout. Those which do not sprout the 'first 
spring may be covered again with coarse manure and ex- 
posed to freezing the second winter. 



The Peach. 93 

If the soil is fertile and kept well cultivated, the trees will 
usually be large enough in the northern states to bud by the 
close of summer. In the south, they may be budded in June. 
The peach is sometimes worked upon plum stocks, 
though the practice is not now regarded with much favor. 
The plum stock slightly enfeebles the growth and also 
lessens damage from the peach borer (121). Dwarf peach 
trees are produced by budding on the Mirabelle, a diminu- 
tive variety of the plum. 

116. Soil. The peach is very often grown on sandy soil, 
and with a favorable climate, trees thus grown succeed and 
fruit well for a time; but they do not, as a rule, endure so 
long as when grown on fertile. and well-drained clay loams. 
11^. Orchard planting:. The peach may be successfully 
transplanted to the orchard the spring after the insertion 
of the bud, but trees two years old from the bud, 
are as a rule, more satisfactory than younger 
ones. The trees may be planted 15 to 20 feet 
apart. The branches are commonly cut back to 
within one bud of the trunk, and the top is con- 
siderably shortened (Fig. 30). 

118. Pruning:. Since the peach bears on wood 
of the preceding season's growth, that pruning 
should be practiced which tends to develop abun- 
dance of new wood near the trunk. Neglected 
trees usually develop long, slender branches 
with little new wood, which is produced at the 
extremities, and the fruit on these tends con- 
^®* ^"'^ stantly to split down the branches. In many 
orchards the new growth is annually cut back from one-half 
to one-third its length in early spring, and the center of the 

> Young peach tree pruned, ready for planting in orchard. (From Bailey's 
"Pruning Book.") 




u 



JLessons in Fruit Growing. 



tree is kept open by cutting back 2 or 3 season^s growth if 
need be (Pigs. 31 and 32). The cutting back of the annual 
growth is less essential when the peach is grown on light 
than on heavy soils. 




Fig. 31. Young orchard peach tree before 
pruning. (From Bailey's " Pruning Booli.") 



Fig. 32. The same tree as Fig. 31, 
after pruning. 



119. Picking and packing:. Peaches should not be 
picked, as a rule, until they are full-grown and have begun 
to assume their mature color, as they do not often color 
perfectly after picking. " It is very difficult to describe 
that period of maturity when a peach is ready for picking. 
An experienced picker will take the fruit softly in his hands 
and press the ball of his thumb very lightly upon the side, 
and if the fruit has a somewhat springy feeling, it is ready 
to take off the tree." ^ 

Peaches are often marketed in round-topped baskets with 



» Principles of Fruit Growing, Bailey, 382. 



The Peach. 



95 




■Fig. 33. Peach basket. 



a. hexagonal base (Fig. 33). To enable the picker to use 
both hands, one of these baskets may be slipped into a ring 
strapped about the waist. The basket, 
when, filled, is replaced by an empty one 
to avoid pouring the fruit from one 
basket to another. 

120. Insects and diseases. The most 
harmful insects are the plum curculio 
(99) and the peach-tree borer. Among 
diseases, the yellows, rosette, leaf curl, 
"*' little peach " and fruit-rot (101) are most serious. 

121. The peach-tree borer {Aegeria excitiosa). The 
female of this insect lays her eggs on the bark near the 
surface of the ground, from the latter part of May until the 
end of August, the time depending much upon the locality. 
The larva penetrates the bark and sap wood of the root, 
causing a copious exudation of gum about the base of the 
tree, which reveals the presence of the insect. 

Preventive measures. The larva3 may be cut out with a 
linife late in the autumn or early in spring by removing 
sufficient earth about the base of the tree. After this the 
tree may be banked up with earth to the height of a foot 
■or more late in the spring, or toward mid-summer in the 
northern states. The mound should be leveled off in Sep- 
tember, after egg laying has ceased. Protecting the trunk 
with straw, tied upright about it and extending a few inches 
below the surface of the soil, has also been recommended. 

122. The yellows is the most dreaded disease of the 
peach. It has destroyed many peach orchards and almost 
annihilated peach culture in some localities. Its infallible 
indications are premature ripening of the fruit, accom- 
;panied by small, bright-red spots upon the skin, and pur- 



96 Lessons in Fruit Growing. 

pie discoloration, with insipid flavor of the flesh. The fol- 
lowing season, numerous slender shoots often appear on 
the larger branches, accompanied by yellowish and sickly 
foliage over the whole tree. Death of the tree soon fol- 
lows. The cause of, and remedy for this disease are un- 
known. 

Preventive measures. Root out and burn ail affected 
trees as soon as discovered, and use no pits or bnds from 
infested districts for propagation. In some states, laws re- 
quiring the immediate destruction of infested trees have 
been rigidly enforced, with the result that the disease has 
been nearly exterminated. 

123. The leaf curl, due to the fungus Exoascus deformans, 
is an abnormal development of the foliage in spring or 
early summer, in which the leaves assume a more or less 
puckered form and whitish color. In severe attacks the 
trees become nearly defoliated and the fruit crop is de- 
stroyed. The disease is most common and most serious in 
wet seasons and in humid climates (103). 

Preventive measures. Recent experiments have shown 
that spraying peach trees with Bordeaux mixture com- 
posed of 5 pounds of copper sulfate, 5 pounds of lime and 
45 gallons of water, shortly before the opening of the 
flower buds, has largely prevented damage from leaf curl. 

124. The rosette is a serious disease of peach trees in 
Southern United States. It is characterized by dense 
clusters of foliage on the young shoots and soon proves 
fatal. Its cause is a mystery and the only preventive 
measure known is the same as described for the yellows (121). 

125. "Little peach" is a disease that has recently appeared 
in parts of Michigan and New York. The peaches fail to 
enlarge or ripen; the trees lose vigor and finally die. The 



The Apricot. 



97 



cause of this disease is also unknown, and the only pre- 
ventive measure is the one described for the j^ellows (121). 



D — THE APRICOT 

126. The apricot {Prunus Armeniaca) resembles to a cer- 
tain extent both the peach and plum. The fruit, which ripens 
earlier than either the peach or plum, resem- 
bles the peach, but is smoother, has rich, yel- 
low flesh and a large, flat, smooth stone. The 
leaves are roundish and pointed; the tree re- 
sembles the peach tree in size and form. 

The apricot is used for dessert^ for canning 
and for drying. It is extensively evaporated 
in parts of California. 

127. Cultural range. The apricot can be 
grown in about the same localities as the 
peach, but requires a somewhat stronger soil 
and more careful treatment, as it is more sub- 
ject to damage from frost and insects. It is 
grown commercially to some extent in the 
Eastern and middle states, but chiefly in Cali- 
foriiia. 

128. Fruiting: habit. The apricot bears its 
flowers on either side of the leaf buds on 
young shoots, like the peach, and also on 
short spurs from the preceding year's growth, 
like the plum (Fig. 34). The flowers expand 
very early in spring and hence are especially 
liable to be injured by frost. The trees com- 
mence bearing at 3 or 4 years old, and under the best con- 
ditions, are nearly or quite as productive as the peach tree. 

• Fruiting wood of apricot. S S, spurs. 



Fio. 34.1 



98 Lessons in Fruit Groioing. 

129. Propagation. The apricot is commonly budded upon 
seedlings of the peach (115) both in the east and west. Plum 
stocks are sometimes used for adapting it to soils where 
peach stocks do not thrive. 

130. Insects and diseases. The plum curculio (99) is the 
most serious insect enemy of the apricot. In California 
the tree is troubled by various scale insects (142). The foli- 
age is sometimes injured by the shot-hole fungus {Gylin- 
drosporium padi)^ for which Bordeaux mixture is a pre- 
ventive. 

STJMMAET OF THE PEAE, QUIIfCE AND STGlSrE FKUITS. 

1. The cultural range of the pear is much restricted 
owing to its susceptibility to fire blight (70). 

2. A well-drained clay soil of moderate fertility, and a 
cool, airy location suit the pear best (71). 

3. The tillage and fertilization of the standard-pear or- 
chard should be less thorough than that recommended for 
the apple (73). The dwarf-pear orchard may be more liber- 
ally tilled, manured and pruned than the standard-pear or- 
chard (75). 

4. The standard pear is commonly grafted upon pear 
seedlings; the dwarf pear upon the French quince. Pear 
seedlings are liable to be destroyed by leaf blight, and by 
being heaved out by frost. A few varieties of the pear are 
more successful when worked upon the quince than upon 
pear seedlings (74, 75). 

5. The quality of most pears is improved by picking the 
fruit before it begins to soften, and storing in darkness (77). 

6. To confine the fire blight to the younger branches of 
the pear tree, it is wise to remove fruit spurs from the trunk 
and older branches (81). The leaf blight may be controlled 
by spraying with Bordeaux mixture (82). 



Summary. 99 

7. The cultural range of the quince is narrower than 
that of the apple, and the fruit is used almost wholly for 
culinary purposes. Quince orchards, properly located and 
cared for, have generally proved profitable (83, 84). 

8. The stone fruits succeed on lighter and drier soil than 
that best suited to the pome fruits. The trees may, there- 
fore, be more liberally cultivated and manured. The flower 
buds form flowers the first season of their life, hence the 
fruit is borne on wood of the preceding year (90, 91, 92). 

9. Five different botanical species of the plum are culti- 
vated in the United States and Canada. Of these, only the 
northern native plum is hardy in the more northern sec- 
tions. The European plum is most generally grown (94). 

10. The plum fruits mainly on spurs from two or three- 
year-old wood. . The tree requires little pruning, as a rule 
(95, 96). 

11. The chief insect enemy of the plum and cherry is 
the plum curculio. It is mainly held in check by the 
*' jarfing process" (99). 

12. The fruit rot, a fungous disease that attacks the fruit 
as it approaches maturity, is often a cause of serious loss 
to the plum and cherry grower in wet seasons. Spraying 
the fruit just before the picking season, liberal thinning of 
the fruit, and picking it when a little hard, are the most 
important preventive measures (101). 

13. The most satisfactory stock for the plum, at least in 
the north, is seedlings QiFrunus Americana (104). 

14. Two botanical species of the cherry are exten- 
sively cultivated in the United States and Canada. Of 
these, the sour cherry {Prunus cerasus) has the much 
wider cultural range (106). The fruiting habit of the 
cherry closely resembles that of the plum (107). 

L.ofC. 



100 Lessons in Fruit Growing. 

15. The cherry thrives best on a warm, dry, sandy or 
gravelly loam (108). 

16. Seedlings of* the bird and mahaleb cherries are 
chiefly used as stocks for the sweet and sour cherries. The 
mahaleb is the more resistant to cold of the two (109). 

17. The peach tree is less resistant to cold than the 
plum or cherry, and its flower huds are more readil}^ excited 
by warm weatlier in wiuter. Its cultural range is there- 
fore comparatively narrow (112, 113). 

18. The peach fruits on wood of the preceding season, 
and not from spurs (114). It is propagated by budding on 
peach seedlings (115). 

19. Peach orchards are commonly most enduring on fer- 
tile, well-drained, clay loams (116). 

20. The peach tree should be pruned to develop an 
abundance of new wood near the trunk (118). 

21. Peaches should be picked when they are full-grown 
and have begun to assume their mature color (119). 

22. The peach is much subject to disease. The yellows, 
rosette and "little peach" are three serious diseases for 
which no remedies are known. The only preventive meas- 
ure practiced is destruction of the affected trees. The leaf 
curl is held in check by spraying with Bordeaux mixture 
(122-125). 

23. The apricot resembles the peach in most characters 
that have a bearing on culture. Its cultural range is nar- 
rower than that of the peach (126-127). 

SUGGESTIONS POR LABOKATOEY WOEK. 

1. Study the insects and diseases aflFecting the pear, 
quince and stone fruits, from the trees and fruits, so far as 
practicable, and apply the preventive measures recom- 
mended. 



The Citrous Fruits. 101 

2. Practice grafting the above-named fruits, so far as 
means and the time of 3'ear permit. 

3. Study the trees of the above-named fruits until each 
species can be recognized at a glance. This study may be 
made at any time of the year. 

4. Practice picking aud packing the fruits of the differ- 
ent species, so far as the season permits. 

5. Practice naming standard varieties of fruit from the 
descriptions in Downing's " Fruits and Fruit Trees of 
America." 

6. Practice writing descriptions of mature samples of 
standard varieties of fruits. 

7. Begin a collection of pits of the different varieties of 
the stone fruits, to be used later for determining varie- 
ties. Number each pit, and catalogue the varieties by 
number. 

Section 4- — The Citrous Fruits 

131. The principal citrous fruits grown commercially 
in the United States for their fruit are the following: 

(a) The sweet orange {Citrus aurantiim^ variety Sinen- 
sis). 

(b) The mandarin or kid-glove orange [Citrus nobilis). 

(c) The lemon {Citrus medica, var. Limon). 

(d) The lime {Citrus medica^ var. acida). 

(e) The pomelo {Citrus Decumana). 

All are small trees or shrubs with evergreen leaves, and 
are hardy only in the extreme south or southwest. The 
fruit of all the above species is injured, while on the tree, 
by a temperature slightly below the freezing point, and 
the younger branches of the trees are destroyed by moder- 
ate freezing. 



102 Lessons in Fruit Growing, 

A. — THE ORAN-GB 

132. The sweet orange is a tree 25 to 30 feet higli at 
maturity". The fruit is prized for dessert and marmalade 
in all countries, and the tree is extensively cultivated in 
warm climates. 

133. The mandarin or kid-glove orange is a shrub or 
small tree, of which the fruit is smaller and more com- 
pressed than that of the sweet orange. The skin is readily 
removed with the fingers, even with gloves on, hence the 
name " kid-glove " orange. Its flavor is unlike that of the 
sweet orange, but is relished by many. The mandarin is 
extensively cultivated in orange regions that are free from 
hot winds, but the fruit is less common in the northern 
markets than the sweet orange. 

134. Cultural range. The orange is grown commercially 
in central and southern Florida, the delta region of the 
Mississippi river and in California. It is likely to be 
grown in the future in parts of Texas, New Mexico and 
Arizona. 

In central Florida, and on the Mississippi delta, the 
orange orchards have suffered much from freezes in winter. 
Though the trees are not often destroyed by this cause, 
their fruitage is rendered uncertain. The early ripening 
of the fruit in these sections, and the fact that irrigation is 
unnecessary, renders orange growing very profitable when 
the orchards escape damage by frost, 

135. Fruiting habit. The orange, in common with other 
citrous fruits, blossoms at the end of short branches from 
the preceding season's growth. After a branch has fruited, 
another grows out below and overreaches it, to bear fruit 
in the future. The trees begin to bear at about 3 years of 
age, and increase in productiveness for several years. 



The Orange. 103 

136. Propagation. The orange may be propagated from 
seeds, cuttings or layers, but seeds are chiefly used. In 
California the seeds are largely saved from commercial 
Tahiti oranges; in Florida, any oranges not too valuable 
are used. The seed should not become dry before planting, 
though that of Citrus trifoliata will endure slight drying. It 
should be planted about an inch deep in light, rich soil, and 
should be mulched or frequently watered in dry weather. 
The seedlings appear in from 2 to 6 weeks. They should 
be shaded somewhat to protect them from heat, and should 
be sprayed with Bordeaux mixture to prevent dampimg off. 
In Florida the seedlings may be planted in nursery rows 
during the summer rainy season, biit less loss occurs when 
one-year-old plants are transplanted in midwinter. The 
seedlings should be watered when transplanted, and after- 
ward if needed. 

In California young trees in the nursery are often pro- 
tected from frost by being covered with a framework over- 
laid with cypress brush. 

Stocks. Citrus trifoliata is chiefly used for stocks where 
the orange tree frequently suffers from cold; in other sec- 
tions the sour or bitter orange {Citrus aurantium^ var. 
ainara), or the "rough lemon," supposed to be of hybrid 
origin, is chiefly used. Seedlings of the sweet orange are 
subject to a disease known as "foot rot." 

Budding. In California, seedlings are budded either in 
spring or autumn, after they have grown a year in the 
nursery. In Florida they are more often allowed to grow 
3 or 4 years in the nurser)"- before budding, and are mostly 
budded just before growth ceases in fall. In cutting back 
the stock after budding, a stub is commonly left for a time, 
above the inserted bud, to which the shoot from the latter 
is tied. Grafting other than budding is seldom practiced. 



104 Lessoiu in Fruit Growing. 

Old trees are top-worked by being cut back severely and 
budded in the vigorous shoots that grow from the remain- 
ing branches. 

13<r. Soil. The orange succeeds best on deep, rich, well- 
drained soil. In parts of Florida it is grown extensively 
on sandy laud, with abundant fertilizing. In the delta of 
the Mississippi, it is grown on deep alluvial soil. In Cali- 
fornia, alluvial soil formed of granite and limestone is con- 
sidered best; hard-pan subsoil and strata of sand and gravel 
are considered objectionable. The orange requires abun- 
dant fertilizing to maintain productiveness. In Florida 
commercial fertilizers are extensively used. 

138. Planting in the orchard. In California, orange trees 
are planted in the orchard at 3 or 4 years old from the 
seed; in Florida, at 4 or 5 years old from the seed. Stand- 
ard trees are planted at 24 to 40 feet apart, though trifo- 
liata stocks (136) may be set closer. In Florida, if orchards 
are to be planted on new land, the holes for the trees are 
dug 2 or 3 months before planting, and the soil thrown out 
is " sweetened " by mixing lime with it. 

Care should be taken to prevent the roots from drying 
in transplanting; the tops should be well cut back, and the 
leaves are often removed to prevent loss of water by trans- 
piration. Abundance of water should be used in planting. 
In California, protection of the trunk after planting is 
considered important. 

139. Orchard culture. The soil of the orange orchard is 
generally kept cultivated, but in Florida, cultivation is 
abandoned after the summer rains begin and a fertilizing 
cover crop is planted, or crab grass is permitted to cover 
the ground; the orchard is mown before the fruit har- 
vest. Three applications of a fertilizer rich in potash are 
often made in Florida during the season, the first in De- 



The Apricot. 105 

•cember, the second in May or June, and the third just be- 
fore the fruit matures. 

140. Harvesting and packing. The fruits are commonly 
«cut from tlie tree to avoid bruising. They are exposed to 
iihe air two or three days for " wilting," after which they 
are wrapped individually in tissue paper and packed in 
•boxes with moderate pressure. 

In Florida, and the delta region, harvesting of the early 
varieties may begin in October, but in California the crop 
is about a month later. The later varieties mature sev- 
eral weeks after the earlier ones. All varieties may be 
left on the trees for several weeks after maturity without 
damage. 

141. Protecting: trees from cold. In northern Florida 
:and the delta region the trunks of orange trees are usually 
banked from 1 to 4 feet high on the approach of freezes, 
which are announced by the Weather Bureau some time 
before their arrival. This saves the budded stem, but the 
branches are often destroyed. Shoots will, however, grow 
■out rapidly from the protected part of the stem and the 
trees will soon recover. Sheds of slats or canvas are 
sometimes built over the trees in north Florida, and in 
severe weather the air within these is heated by fire, or 
kept from frost by spraying with water. 

142. Harmful parasites. The orange is comparatively 
little injured by parasites or disease, with the exception of 
:scale insects, of which several species are injurious. For 
these, various oils or caustic washes are used with more or 
less success.' 

' Formulae for two of these washes are given in " Principles of Plant Cul- 
■ture." For several others, consult Wickson's " California Fruits." CDewey & 
<5o., San Francisco.) 



106 Lessons in Fruit Growing. 

B — THE LEMOJS" 

143. The lemon is a bush or small tree with smooth^ 
yellowish-green shoots. It is less resistant to cold than 
the orange, and its fruiting branches are longer and more- 
spreading. 

Cultural range. The lemon thrives best in a nearly 
frostless climate, but requires somewhat less summer heat 
than the sweet orange — conditions that are found in 
the United States only in southern Florida, and in the 
coast region and some interior valleys of southern Cali- 
fornia. 

144. Culture Of the lemon. The trees are mostly budded 
on seedlings of the sour orange or " rough lemon " (136). 
They succeed best on a lighter and warmer soil than is. 
suited to the orange. The trees are planted 20 to 25 feet 
apart, and the planting and orchard culture areas described 
for the orange (138, 139). In Florida the orchard is fertilized,, 
at the rate of 800 to 1,500 pounds per acre, with a mixture 
of sulfate of potash, sulfate of ammonia and bone black. The 
trees are pruned by shortening the slender fruiting branches- 
and thinning out the superfluous shoots. 

145. Harvesting and curing. The fruits are commonly 
cut from the tree as fast as they attain a diameter of 2^ 
inches, as measured with an iron ring, usually before they 
begin to change color. They are handled in shallow boxes,, 
which are piled, with air spaces between, in curing houses 
arranged to give good ventilation without exposing the 
fruit to drafts of air or great changes of temperature. The 
crop is mostly picked in winter, but is not marketed until 
the next summer. The fruits are packed for market as di- 
rected for the orange (140). 



The Lime and Pomelo, 107 

— THE LIME 

146. The lime is a low, much-branched, very thorny tree 
or shrub that thrives on poorer soil and nearer salt water 
than other citrous fruits. The fruit is prized in tropical 
countries for cool drinks and in cookery, and is much used 
for making citric acid. Most varieties of the lime are more 
tender to endure cold than the lemon, but a single sort — 
the Sour Rangpur, from India, is as hardy as the sweet 
orange. The variety most grown in Florida is the West 
Indian, which is grown from seed. Other varieties are 
budded on the " rough lemon " and sour orange (136). The 
trees are planted 15 to 25 feet apart and cultivated like 
orange trees (139). The lime is little grown in California 
but considerably in South Florida. 

D — THE POMELO 

14^. The pomelo tree is a little larger than the orange 
tree; it is now extensively cultivated in southern Florida 
and California. The fruit, which is very large and resem- 
bles the orange in appearance, though paler in color, is 
borne in clusters of 3 to 15, hence the . common name 
" grape fruit." A well-marked variety, with pear-shaped 
fruit, called shaddock is little cultivated. The fruit of the 
pomelo is esteemed for dessert and as a promoter of diges- 
tion. The culture practiced is much the same as for the 
orange. The varieties are budded on seedlings of the pom- 
elo or the sweet or sour orange. The tree is more readily 
injured by cold than the orange tree. 

STJMMAET OF THE PRECEDING SECTIOU 

1. The citrous fruits are grown commercially in the 
United States only in central and southern Florida, the 



108 Lessons in Fruit Growing. 

delta region of the Mississippi river, and in California. 
Only in the southern parts of Florida and California do the 
trees escape damage from freezing (133). 

2. The orange is mostly propagated by budding on seed- 
lings of the sour orange, the "rough lemon," or Citrus 
trifoliata; the latter is used in sections where the first two 
suffer from cold (133). 

3. The orange succeeds best on deep, rich, well-drained 
soil. In parts of Florida it is extensively grown on sandy 
soil, well fertilized (137). 

4. Orange trees are planted in the orchard when 8 to 5 
years old from the seed. The trees are commonly grown 
Si to 40 feet apart, but those worked on trifoliata stocks 
may be set closer (138), 

5. Orange orchards are commonly well cultivated during 
the growing season. In Florida, cultivation often ceases 
after the summer rains begin (139). 

6. The orange harvest begins in October in the Gulf re- 
gion; in California it commences a month later. The 
fruits are cut from the tree, " wilted" a short time, wrapped 
in tissue paper and packed in boxes with moderate pres- 
sure (140). 

7. Orange trees are protected from cold in the Gulf re- 
gion by banking earth about the trunks, or by building 
sheds over them. Sometimes heat is used in the sheds 
(141). 

8. Scale insects are the chief enemies of the orange tree. 
These are held in check by various caustic washes (142). 

9. The lemon is less resistant to cold than the orange. 
It is grown in the United States in the southern parts of 
Florida and California (143). Its culture is very similar to 
that of the orange (144). 



The Nuts. 109 

10. Lemons are cut from the tree before maturity, and as 
fast as they attain a given size. They are mostly harvested 
in winter, and are cured in special buildings (145). 

11. The lime thrives on poorer soil and nearer salt w^ater 
than other citrous fruits. It is grown in the United States 
chiefly in south Florida (146). 

12. The pomelo resembles the orange in form and ap- 
pearance, but is paler in color and much larger. The fruit 
is borne in clusters. It is rather extensively cultivated in 
south Florida and California. Its culture differs little 
from that of the orange (147). 

SUGGESTIONS POR LABORATORY WORK 

1. Within the regions where citrous fruits are grown, 
students may be required to study the characteristics of 
the different species and varieties, the insect enemies, etc., 
as recommended in the section on the stone fruits. 

2. The character of the orange, as modified by the climate 
in which it was grown, may be studied in the local market 
in all localities. The structure of the Navel orange, as 
compared with other varieties, may also be studied, as well 
as the methods of packing, varieties, etc. 

3. The different species of citrous fruits may be studied 
in the local market. 

Section 5. — The Nuts 

148. Present condition and prospects of nut culture. 

Little attention has thus far been given to the cultivation 
of nut trees in the United States or Canada. Several kinds 
of nuts are common in our markets, but the chief supply 
of native nuts still comes from wild trees. The consump- 
tion of nuts is increasing, while the forest areas are rapidly 



110 Lessons in Fruit Growing. 

diminisTning, and tlie cultivation of nuts is certain to in- 
crease in importance in the future. Several of the nut 
trees are valuable for timber; others thrive on land that is 
worth little for farming. The time required for most nut 
trees to produce paying crops will tend to prevent over-- 
planting, while the good keeping qualities of nuts render 
them a safe crop to grow. 

The commercial production of nuts offers a promising 
field to cultivators possessing suitable land in a favorable 
climate. Most nut plantations in this country have thus 
far been made of seedling trees. As these are extremely 
variable, the highest success cannot be hoped for in this 
way. Now that successful grafting methods have been 
found, there is less excuse for planting seedlings. Named 
varieties may be had that bear freely nuts of superior qual- 
ity, and only those, or meritorious wild trees, should be 
propagated for the commercial nut orchard. The leading 
nurserymen now list the principal nut trees, and some 
named varieties are offered. The number of the latter will 
increase with the demand. All of the native wild nuts are 
decidedly variable, and forms much superior to the average 
are occasionally found. With the exception of the almond, 
all of the nuts cultivated in this country have monoecious 
flowers, i. e., the stamens and pistils are produced in differ- 
ent flowers on the same plant. 

A — THE PECAN" 

149. The pecan {Hicoria pecan or. Cart/a oUvceformis) is 
the most important native American nut. The fruit is 
largely used for dessert and by confectioners; the commer- 
cial demand for it is rapidly increasing. 

The tree, in its natural habitat, sometimes attains im- 



The Pecan. Ill 

mense size, and the very tough and heavy wood, which 
resembles that of the common hickory, is much used for 
purposes requiring great strength and elasticity. Like the 
walnut, the tree has a strong tap-root while young, which 
renders it difScult to transplant successfully. The tap-root 
is often cut off by digging down on one side of the tree 
the year before the transplanting is contemplated. 
■ 150. Fruiting: habit. The pecan, in common with all of 
the hickories, bears its male and female flowers separately 
upon the growing shoots; the male flowers in slender cat- 
kins at the base of the shoot, and the female flowers near its 
apex, the fruit becoming lateral by the continued growth 
of the shoot. The fruit is therefore borne near the base of 
the young wood. 

The trees may yield paying crops of nuts at 10 years old, 
and the crops increase for many years. A tree of full 
bearing age may yield from 1 to 20 bushels annually. 

151. Cultural range. The pecan is indigenous through- 
out most of the valleys of the Mississippi and its larger 
tributaries, and eastern and central Texas, extending south- 
ward into Mexico, but nowhere reaching the Grulf coast. 
Commercial plantations have been made over much of this 
region and also in the southern Atlantic states, New Mex- 
ico, California and Oregon. The trees are not productive 
in the east far north of the Potomac and Ohio rivers. 

152. Soil reqairements and propagation. The moist 
clayey and sandy loams of river bottoms, subject to occa- 
sional overflow, are peculiarly adapted to the pecan tree. 
It also thrives on sufficiently moist and rich uplands. The 
soil should be well drained. Crafting of the pecan is less 
successful than of most fruit trees. Crown-grafting on 
pecan seedlings an inch or two in diameter, in early spring, 



112 Lessons in Fruit Growing. 

with terminal-bud cions, and without wax, has been most 
successful. The stock should be cut off smoothly at the 
crown, and grafted by splice or side-cleft graft, according 
to the size of the stock; but one of the splice surfaces- 
should expose the pith. The grafted crown is mounded with 
moist earth to the top bud of the cion, to prevent drying. . 

Ring-budding on the new wood of second-year seedlings- 
is fairly successful when not followed by drought or heavy 
rains. 

To produce seedlings, the nuts may be planted in au- 
tumn, in well-drained soil, but where mice and squirrels- 
are troublesome, they are preferably stratified in autumn 
and planted as early as the ground can be worked iii 
spring. The growth of the young trees should be en- 
couraged as far as possible the first season. 

153. Planting: and cultivation. The trees of most pecan; 
orchards have been planted 40 to 50 feet apart, but 60 feet 
would probably be a safer distance. Ungrafted seedling 
trees may be planted closer, with the idea of removing thfr 
unprofitable ones as they become known. Formerly, nuts- 
were often planted where the trees were desired, but latterly 
the trees have largely been transplanted at 1 or 2 years^ 
old from nursery rows. The tap-root of the one-year-old 
pecan tree is usually much longer than the stem, but it may 
be moderately shortened without perceptibly checking thfr 
growth. 

Tiie success of the orchard depends much upon a vigorous 
growth of the trees the season after, transplanting, hence- 
the soil should be made very rich, and be thoroughly pre- 
pared. The ground is usually cropped with hoed crops for 
4 or 5 years; and some growers continue the cropping in- 
definitely. The soil should be kept in good fertility. 



The Pecan. 113 

154. Pruning; the pecan does not appear to be generally 
practiced, but it is said that the trees endure pruning well. 
Since the frnit is borne only on the new wood, it would 
seem that, at least in old trees, pruning might be beneficial 
by increasing the number of new shoots. 

155. Harvesting: and marketing. The fallen nuts are 
commonly gathered at frequent intervals. Sometimes the 
dropping is hastened by beating the branches with poles. 
The nuts should not become wet, as this would injure their 
appearance and quality. They should be dried somewhat, 
before storing in bulk. Most pecans of medium size and 
below, are polished by friction in revolving barrels before 
marketing. At present, the demand for the larger thin- 
shelled nuts for seed is so great, that few reach the retail 
market. Fifteen to 20 cents per pound is a fair market 
price: a bushel contains 44 to 50 pounds. 

156. Parasitic enemies. The hickory-shuck worm 
(Grapholitha caryana) is perhaps the most serious insect 
enemy to the pecan. The larva penetrates the hull and 
young nut, causing premature dropping. The infested 
nuts should be promptly gathered and burned. The fall web- 
worm [Hifphantria cunea) is injurious to the foliage. It 
may be controlled by burning the webs as fast as discov- 
ered with a torch attached to a pole, or by spraying with 
an arsenite. The hickory twig-girdler (Oncideres cingu- 
latus) sometimes troubles the pecan by girdling the twigs, 
causing them to be blown off. The fallen twigs should be 
promptly burned. Certain borers injure enfeebled trees; 
the only remedy is to destroy such trees. 

15^. Other nut trees allied to the pecan. Several other 
species of the genus Hicoria that bear edible nuts are native 
in northern United States. The shell bark or shagbark hick- 



114: Lessons in Fruit Growing. 

orj [Cary alba or Hicoria ovata) lias produced many wild 
varieties much superior to the average in size and quality. 
Some of these have been planted for their nuts. Now that 
successful methods of grafting the hickory are becoming 
known, the cultivation of this species may become more 
popular in the north. 

B — THE CHESTNUT 

158. The American chestnut {Castanea Americana) is a 
favorite among our native nuts, owing to its tender shell 
and sweet meat. The nuts are extensively marketed from 
wild trees throughout its habitat, and increased attention 
is being given to its culture. The European chestnut 
(C. sativa) and the Japanese chestnut (C crenata) have been 
introduced and are cultivated to some extent. 

Two species of chinkapin {Castanea pumila and C. aim- 
folia) are more or less dwarfed trees, and bear small, early- 
maturing nuts, that are quite largely marketed from wild 
trees in parts of southern United States. 

The American chestnut is a large tree; the European 
chestnut is a smaller, lower-branched tree, and the Japan- 
ese species is still smaller, and of a compact, symmetrical 
habit. The nuts of the foreign species are larger than those 
of the American, but they are more astringent and less sweet. 

159. Cultural range. The American chestnut is native 
from southern Maine to Delaware and along the Alle- 
ghany Mountaius to northern Alabama, extending to the 
Atlantic coast in North Carolina; also westward through 
southern Canada to southern Michigan, southern Indiana 
and Illinois, through Tennessee, Kentucky and Mississippi 
to Louisiana. Its area has been extended slightly by plant- 
ings, but the southern range appears to be receding to the 



The Chestnut. 115 

northward. The foreign species are less hardy than the 
native. 

160. Fruiting habit. The pollen-bearing flowers of the 
chestnut grow from the axils of successive or alternate 
leaves on the young shoots, opening in early summer, in 
long catkins which bear fragrant pollen. The pistillate or 
female flowers grow from the axils of the leaves on the 
more extended shoot, in four-pointed burs on stiff spikes. 
The female flowers are thus developed on later and younger 
wood than the male. Usually only 1 to 3 flowers near the 
base of the spike produce nuts. In the American chestnut 
two to seven nuts are commonly borne in a husk. The in- 
termingling of pollen from different trees is thought essen- 
tial to productiveness by some growers. 

Ungrafted trees of the American chestnut commence 
bearing at 12 to 20 years old; grafted ones at 2 to 7 years 
after grafting. Wild trees differ greatly in fruitfulness, 
the more productive ones yielding regular crops of one 
or more bushels per tree. The Japanese chestnut bears 
youngest and most freely of all. 

161. Soil. The native chestnut is usually found on high, 
sandy land, gravel ridges or mountain slopes, and generally 
on soil nearly or quite free from limestone. On deep prairie 
soils and alluvial bottom lands it is short-lived. It is thus 
suited to land not specially valuable for farm crops. 

162. Propagation. The chestnut is readily propagated 
by planting the nuts. These should be stratified in au- 
tumn, before becoming dry, in moist sand and kept over 
winter in a cool cellar or buried in the ground. They should 
be planted an inch or two deep in early spring. The chest- 
nut may be grafted on any species of its own genus and on 
some of the oaks. Most American chestnut orchards have 



116 Lessons in Fruit Growing. 

been formed by cutting down native chestnut groves and 
grafting sprouts from the stumps. Ordinary grafting meth- 
ods, carefully performed, are fairly successful. In budding, 
dormant buds are usually inserted when the barb peels in 
the spring, in shoots of the previous year. Rank-growing 
grafts should be checked by pinching, and if exposed to 
winds they should be tied to stakes to prevent their being 
blown off. The chinkapin has been used to some extent 
as a stock for the native and introduced chestnuts. 

163. Orchard treatment. The orchards grown from 
grafted sprouts are cared for by cutting out brambles and 
superfluous sprouts, or pasturing with sheep, and by guard- 
ing the trees from fire. Planted trees of the American 
species should be set 40 to 50 feet apart; those of the for- 
eign species may be set somewhat closer. The ground 
may be used for other crops until the trees shade it, but 
these will thrive best if the soil is kept well cultivated and 
moderately fertile. Little pruning is necessary. The burs 
on some trees of the foreign species may require thinning 
to prevent overbearing. 

164. Preparing: for market. The nuts are prepared for 
market by pouring boiling water over them in a suitable 
vessel, as soon as gathered. By stirring the nuts in the hot 
water, the wormy ones will float and can be removed. The 
eggs and larvae of insects are destroyed by the heat, and 
the kernel of the nuts is rendered more tender. After 15 
minutes the water should be poured off and the nuts spread 
for drying. Scalded nuts will not germinate. 

165. Harmful parasites. Several species of curculio in- 
fest the chestnut. Scalding the nuts (164) tends to keep 
these in check. Certain leaf diseases may probably be pre- 
vented by spraying with Bordeaux mixture. 



The Walnut. 117 

C — THE WALKUT 

166. The species. Only one species of tlie walnut, viz., 
the so-called English or Persian walnut {Juglans regia) 
is cultivated commercially for its nuts in North America. 
The native black walnut {J. nigra) and the butternut 
(.7. cinera) are prized for their timber and for shade, and 
their nuts are frequently gathered for market from the wild 
trees. The trees of the species named grow to a large size 
and are long-lived. The wood of the black walnut is greatly 
prized for cabinet work, owing to its deep brown color. 

16<r. Cultural range. The English walnut is more or less 
cultivated in sheltered locations and on rich soil from 
Southern New York southward to Northern Georgia, and 
westward across Tennessee and Kentucky to the Mississippi 
river. In Southern California its culture is more general, 
and in certain locations it proves very profitable. The 
tree is fastidious as to conditions and is productive in com- 
paratively few localities. The soil should be rich, moist 
and well-drained. In California it is most successful in 
villages within 30 miles of the coast, and where ground 
water is within 10 to 15 feet of the surface. 

168. Fruiting habit. The staminate flowers of the wal- 
nut are borne in single catkins, from wood of the previous 
season, and the pistillate ones at the ends of short branches. 

In California the trees begin to fruit at 4 to 10 years old; 
in the Atlantic states at 10 to 20 years. Two to 5 pounds 
of nuts per tree is an average crop for the second bearing 
year. Some 20-year-old trees in California yield 3 bushels 
per year. In Southern California, the crop begins to ripen 
from the tenth to the last of September. 

The admixture of varieties for pollination is regarded as 
important. 



118 Lessons in Fruit Growing. 

169. Propag:ation. Most American orchards of tbe- 
English walnut consist of seedling trees. The largest, 
thinnest-shelled nuts, from trees that combine hardiness 
and productiveness, and that start growth late in spring, 
should be chosen for planting. These may be stratified 
over winter in moist sand, and as they germinate in spring, 
the sprouted nuts may be planted on deep, rich, well- 
drained soil, 1 foot apart in rows 4 feet apart, and covered 
about 2 inches with fine soil, well firmed about the seed. 
The seedlings should grow sufficiently for budding the 
first season, but if to be planted in the orchard without 
budding, they are commonly left in the nursery 2 or 3 
years. The trees may be budded by either the shield or 
ring method. Cleft grafting has also been successfully- 
practiced, 

1^0. Orchard culture and pruning:. The trees are 
planted about 40 feet apart each way. Clean culture is ad- 
vised for the first few years, though, if well fertilized, the 
ground may be used for low-growing hoed crops or for 
the smaller and shorter-lived fruit trees. 

California growers prune off only those limbs that would 
interfere with cultivation. Wounds should be waxed to 
keep water from the pith. 

1 <ri. Harvesting:, curing and marketing:. In some local- 
ities, the ripe hulls open on the trees, permitting the nuts 
to fall. In this case, the ground beneath the trees is cleared 
of leaves, and the fallen nuts are gathered once or twice a 
week and taken to the drying-house, Young trees are 
jarred to promote the dropping of the nuts. Beating the 
trees with poles is not advised. Where the hull does not 
open, the nuts are left on the ground until the hull be- 
comes brown, when it is removed b}"" hand or by light 
pounding. Shells discolored by the hulls are washed. 



The Almond. 119 

The nuts are dried by exposure to tlie sun on platforms 
or trays, or in large orchards, by artificial heat. Three 
days of sun exposure, or 6 or 7 hours drying at 200° F., 
cures them sufficiently so that the meats remain frosh sev- 
eral months in a dry, cool place. 

The nuts are commonly marketed in sacks holding 
about 120 pounds. Some growers grade the nuts according 
to size. The prices received by growers range from 4^ to 
20 cents per pound. 

U2, Introduced walnuts. Three other species of wal- 
nuts, y'lz.^ Juglans Sieboldiana, J.cordiformis and J. Mancl- 
sJmrica^ have been introduced into the United States from 
eastern Asia, but are not yet grown commercially. The first- 
two promise to be valuable in Californra. Several hybrids 
between different species of walnuts have been reported. 

D — THE ALMOND 

1^3. The almond {Primus Amygdalus) resembles the 
peach in habit of growth, and the nut is the pit of a peach- 
like fruit, in which the fleshy part is thin and hard and 
splits at maturity. The almonds are divided into two 
classes — the bitter and the sweet. The sweet class includes 
hard-shell and soft-shell types, of which the latter pro- 
duce the edible almonds of commerce. 

U4. Cultural range. The successful culture of the al- 
mond in North America is limited to a few comparatively 
small districts in California, Utah and Arizona. The tree 
is nearly as hardy as the peach tree, but the flowers open 
so early that they are almost invariably destroyed by frost, 
except in the districts noted. The most successful almond 
orchards in California are on "bench" or hillside situ- 
ations, far enough from salt water to escape fogs, and with 
aspects that are little subject to spring frosts. 



120 Lessons in Fruit Growing. 

1^5. Fruiting: habit. The almond closely resembles tlie 
peach in its manner of flowering and fruiting (114). The 
tree comes into bearing at 2 to 4 years from budding, and 
reaches mature fruitage at 7 to 10 years of age. Five 
pounds of hulled almonds per tree is reported a good aver- 
age crop for an orchard in California. The nuts begin to 
ripen about the middle of August. The admixture of vari- 
eties for pollination is regarded important. 

1 ^6. The soil for the almond should be light, warm and 
well drained. The tree will endure much drought, but 
only yields good crops on rich, well-watered soils. 

\XX. Propagation. The almond is chiefly propagated by 
budding on seedlings of sweet or bitter, hardshell almonds, 
though peach stocks are sometimes used. The seedlings 
may be grown as described for the peach (115). The trees 
may be planted in the orchard the spring after budding, or 
the following spring. 

178. Planting and pruning:. The trees should be planted 
at least 24 feet apart each way. The young trees are com- 
monly cut back at planting to form a low head. The 
branches are thinned, leaving about five, and the follow- 
ing winter, these are cut back to encourage them to branch 
near the trunk. The next winter the trees are pruned 
to a vase form; henceforward only the inner branches are 
thinned out as they become too thick. 

1 79. Preparing: the crop for market In sections with 
a very dry summer atmosphere the hull opens readily^ ex- 
posing the unstained nuts ready for niarket. In regions 
with a moister atmosphere, the more or less stained nuts 
are bleached by sulfur fumes. The nuts are first well 
dried, then lightly sprayed with water and treated to the 
sulfur fumes, which do not penetrate to the kernel. More 



The Hazel. 121 

or less of the nuts have adhering hulls which are separated 
by a machine called an almond huUer. Nuts stained by 
rain cannot be bleached by sulfur, and must be sold for 
confectioners' use. The quality of almonds depends upon 
the smoothness, symmetry and plumpness of the kernels. 

180. Parasitic enemies. The almond trees of California 
are often injured by the red spider {Tetranychus telarius\ 
which may be destroyed by spraying with a caustic solu- 
tion. This may be made bj'" boiling 3 pounds of sulfur 
and 2 pounds of caustic soda in 2 gallons of water; adding 
when the sulfur is dissolved, 25 pounds of whale-oil soap, 
diluting with enough water to make 100 gallons after the 
soap is dissolved by continued boiling. 

A shot-hole fungus {Cercosjjora ciroumscissa)' is often 
■destructive to the foliage of the almond in California. 
Three or more sprayings with ammoniacal solution of cop- 
per carbonate ' are recommended for this disease. The first 
treatment should be given as soon as the leaves appear. 

E — THE HAZEL 

181, Tlie hazel {Corylus) has been little cultivated in 
North America, though two native species are widely dis- 
tributed. In Europe, two species are extensively cultivated 
and yield most of the hazel nuts and filberts of our markets. 
Our wild species are quite variable, and individual plants 
bearing nuts of good size and quality have been reported 
from many places. The species are hardier than most of 
•our cultivated fruits, and are worthy the attention of hor- 
ticulturists in severe climates. The suckering habit of the 
plant is perhaps its most serious objection, though it is 

' For directions for making the ammoniacal solution of copper carbonate, 
see "Principles of Plant Culture." 



122 



Lessons in Fruit Groioing. 



probably little worse in this respect thcin the raspberry. 
The dwarf habit of our native species commends them for 
cultivation in small grounds. Some foreign species attain 
the size of small trees. 

182. Fruiting habit. The staminate flowers are produced 
in catkins from the previous season's growth, and the pis- 
tillate ones, which form a star-like tuft of crimson stigmas, 
grow at the base of the catkins (Figs. 35, 36). The pistil- 
late flowers sometimes bloom 
later than the staminate ones on 
the same plant, rendering it un- 
fruitful unless pollen is received 
from another plant. The hazel 
commonly bears considerable 
fruit the fifth or sixth year after 
planting. 

183. Propagation and orchard 
culture. In Europe, the hazel 
is propagated by seed, layers, 
suckers, cuttings and grafting. 
Nursery plants are generally 
grown from cuttings 8 to 10 
inches long, from the previous 
year's wood. If packed in moist 
sand, the cuttings become well 
rooted in one season, and can 

be transplanted to the nursery, (From Bailey's "Pruning Book."> 

where, during the next two seasons, the plants are trained 
to a single stem. 

The hazel thrives in nearly all soils except stiff clay or 
dry sand. A light loam with dry subsoil gives the smallest 
growth of wood and the largest yield of nuts. The trees 




Fig. 35. Fig. 

Fig. 35. Staminate flowers of 
the hazel. 
Fig. 36. Pistillate flowers. 



Summary of the Preceding Section, 123 

are set 10 feet apart eacli way, or sometimes nearer in 
the row. The shoots are thinned by summer pruning, and 
those left are cut back toward the end of winter. The 
fruitful limbs are cut back nearly to the buds of the female 
flowers. 

184. Harvesting: and marketing:. The nuts are permitted 
to become fully ripe, as is indicated by the brown color of 
the shell and the readiness with which they may be jarred 
out of the husks. The husks are then gathered and spread 
in a loft for a few days to dry when they are packed, with- 
out shelling, in casks, with a slight sprinkling of salt to 
kee]^ out insects. 

185. Insect enemies. A curculio belonging to the genus 
Balaninus lays its egg in the young nut in summer, and 
the larva hatching from it causes the well-known " wormy" 
hazelnuts. This insect could doubtless be controlled by 
the methods used in combating the plum curculio (99). 

SUMMAKT OP THE PKECEDIN"G SECTION" 

1. The consumption of nuts in North America is increas- 
ing, while their production is decreasing, owing to the 
clearing of the wild lands. The culture of nut trees is, 
therefore, assuming importance (M8). 

2. The pecan is the most important nut native to the 
United States (119). 

3. The pecan is chiefly cultivated in the Mississippi 
Valley, the Atlantic states south of the Ohio and Potomac 
rivers, and in California and Oregon (151). 

4. The pecan thrives on the rich, moist loams of river 
bottoms. Varieties of it are propagated by grafting on 
pecan seedlings (152). 

5. Pecan trees should be planted 40 to 60 feet apart, on 



124: Lessons m Fruit Growing. 

ricli land, thoroughly prepared. The soil between the 
trees may be planted with hoed crops (153). 

6. Pecan nuts are gathered as they fall; they should not 
become wet; those of medium size and below are polished 
before marketing (155). 

7. Three species of the chestnut are cultivated to some 
extent in eastern United States; the native species is hardi- 
est of the three, and produces the sweetest nuts, but the 
two introduced species produce larger nuts (159). 

8. The chestnut thrives on high, sandy land, gravel 
ridges or mountain. slopes (161). The trees are grown from 
seed, and improved varieties are perpetuated by ordinary 
grafting methods (162). 

9. The soil of the chestnut orchard is preferably kept 
well cultivated and moderately fertile (163). 

10. The English or Persian walnut is cultivated to some 
extent in eastern United States, but principally in southern 
California. The trees are productive in only a few locali- 
ties (167). 

11. Trees of the English walnut are seldom grafted; the 
largest, thinnest-shelled nuts from hardy ^nd productive 
trees are commonly planted (169). 

12. Trees of the English walnut are planted about 40 
feet apart each way. The ground should be cultivated ; if 
well fertilized, it may be planted with hoed crops, or the 
smaller fruit trees (170). 

13. The nuts are gathered as they fall; if the hulls do 
not open, they are removed by hand, or by light pounding. 
The nuts must be dried before being stored in bulk (171). 

14. The almond is successful in the United States only 
in a few districts in California, Utah and Arizona (174). 
The tree resembles the peach tree in many respects (175). 



Suggestions for Laboratory WorJc. 125 

15. Tlie almond is chiefly propagated by budding on 
seedlings of the sweet or bitter, hard-shell almond (177). 
The trees should be planted at least 24 feet apart, on light, 
warm, well-drained soil (176, 178). 

16. The quality of almonds depends upon the smooth- 
ness, symmetry and plumpness of the kernels. In regions 
having a moist atmosphere, the nuts are bleached with 
sulfur fumes to restore their brightness (179). 

17. The hazel has been little cultivated in North Amer- 
ica, but the hardiness of the plant commends it for north- 
ern localities where few fruits can be grown (181). 

18. The hazel may be readily propagated by cuttings 
and thrives on nearly all soils (183). 

SIJGGESTIOlJrS EOR LABOEATOET WOEK 

1. Ascertain the species of nuts sold in. your local mar- 
ket, the price at which each is sold, and the locality whence 
each came. 

2. Ascertain, the species of nut trees that are native in 
your locality. 

3. Require the students to study sample trees of the dif- 
ferent kinds of nuts, so far as they are available, until each 
can name every one at a glance. 

4. Practice grafting the different nut trees, so far as 
practicable. 

5. Study the variations of the wild nuts produced in 
your locality, and require each student to select his ideal 
type, giving reasons for his choice. 



•126 Lessons in Fruit Growing. 

CHAPTER III 

THE GRAPE 

186. The grape is rapidly becoming one of the principal 
American fruits. The varieties now chiefly grown in this 
country are of American origin and have nearly all been 
produced within the past half century, mainly from the 
following species: 

(a) Vitis Labrusca, the northern fox grape, which is the 
parent of the Catawba, Isabella, Concord, etc. 

(b) Vitis oestivaUs, the summer grape, the parent of the 
■Clinton grape and others of its class. 

(c) Vitis cordifolia, the winter or frost grape, with its 
variety, riparia, is the more common wild grape of the 
northern states. 

(d) Vitis Vulpina, the southern fox grape, the parent of 
"the Scuppernong variety. 

Formerly many experiments were made in this country 
with the European grape {Vitis Vinifera), but this species 
proved too subject to disease in the east. It is much grown 
in the far southwest. 

Most species of the grape hybridize readily, and many of 
our cultivated varieties are hybrids. The hybrids between 
the European and American grapes have generally proved 
unsatisfactory through their liability to disease. 

18t. Soil and exposure. A warm and prolonged sum- 
mer temperature is essential to the development of the finer 
qualities of the grape. In the northern states, a southern 
exposure, in localities especially exempt from untimely 
frosts, and a perfectly-drained, light, loamy soil are most 



The Grape. 12T 

favorable. Ratlier steep hillsides may be used for the grape 
by terracing. 

188. Propagation. The grape is readily propagated by 
layers and cuttings and less readily by grafting. Seed- 
lings are rarely grown except to obtain new varieties. 

(a) By layers. New shoots of most varieties of the 
grape, layered before midsummer, usually root freely the 
first season. This method forms a convenient way for the 
amateur to propagate a few vines, and the superfluous 
shoots from the base of bearing vines may be used for this 
purpose. But where vines are wanted in large numbers, 
and of varieties which do not readily root from cuttings, 
vines should be planted expressly for layering. In this 
case, the soil should be made very rich to- produce a vigor- 
ous growth of shoots. These parent vines should be 
planted 6 or 7 feet apart and should be permitted to grow 
2 or 3 years, or until 2 or 3 vigorous shoots are produced, 
before layering begins. It is well to train these shoots to 
upright stakes. About the time the leaf buds begin to 
open, the strongest of these shoots may be layered by put- 
ting down so much of each shoot as has strong, well- 
developed buds, in a straight trench about 5 inches deep, in 
which it is held i:i place b}^ pegs or stones. When shoots 
from the buds on the layered cane have grown a few 
inches, the cane should be lightly covered with earth or 
compost, and it is well to mulch it with a little loose, damj) 
moss. Too much earth added at first may cause rotting of 
the young stems. Usually not more than 6 plants should 
be raised from one cane, and if the shoots of these grow 
unequally, the more vigorous ones should be pinched. In 
the meantime, one or more young shoots, the number de- 
pending on the strength of the parent plant, should be 



128 Lessons in Fruit Growing. 

trained upright, for laj'ering the next season. The plants 
from the layered cane should be well rooted before winter. 
They should be taken up in autumn, separated by cutting 
the parent cane between the plants, and kept through the 
winter by being buried in a well-drained place in the open 
ground, or in a cool, moist cellar. 

The layering process may be repeated in successive years. 
Should the parent plant show reduced vigor, laj^'ering 
should be omitted one season to permit it to recuperate. 

(b) By cuttings. Most varieties of the grape are readily 
propagated from cuttings of the previous year's growth. 
The cuttings are preferably made in autumn. It is cus- 
tomary to use cuttings containing two nodes, cut shortly 
below the proximal node and an inch or two above the 
distal one. The cuttings may be buried a foot or more 
deep, in well-drained soil in antumn, and some varieties 
are found to root better if buried with their proximal end 
uppermost. The canes may be buried during winter and 
the cuttings made in spring, but it is usually more satis- 
factory to make the cuttings in autumn. 

The cuttings should be planted in spring, in well pre- 
pared soil, and up to the distal bud. They may be placed 
4 or 6 inches apart in rows, preferably running north and 
south, and the rows should be far enough apart to admit 
of convenient cultivation. Well-crumbled soil should be 
compactly pressed about the cuttings. To facilitate the 
latter process, the cuttings are often laid against the slop- 
ing side of a trench. This is then filled with the soil, 
which is pressed about the cuttings with the foot. 

It is important to shade the cuttings from bright sun- 
shine. This may be done by supporting a board, 8 or 10 
inches wide, on light stakes a short distance above the row, 



The Gra^pe. 129 

and the shading shouhT be so placed over the row as to in- 
tercept the sun's rays during the warmer part of the day. 
It should be left on until after midsummer, when it is pref- 
erably removed. 

The grape is often propagated under glass, and over bot- 
tom heat, from single-bud cuttings. For this purpose, the 
wood should be cut in autumn and kept through winter as 
before described. The cuttings are made and planted dur- 
ing March and the first part of April. They may be of 
various forms. An improved method is to cut the distal 
end one-fourth inch above the bud, and the proximal end 
about two inches below the bud. These cuttings are planted 
at an angle of 45 degrees, so that the bud, which points up- 
ward, just appears above the surface. Care should be taken 
to prevent the drying of the cuttings during their prepara- 
tion and insertion. When the cuttings are to be grown in 
hotbeds they are usually placed in small pots, but when 
intended for the propagating house, they may be grown 
directly in the beds if preferred. In making the propa- 
gating bed for grape cuttings, a thin layer of potting 
soil is sometimes placed in the bottom of the bed to nourish 
the rooted cuttings until they can be potted. After pot- 
ting they are allowed to grow until well rooted before 
planting out. 

The grape is also sometimes propagated from green cut- 
tings, but, as vines thus grown do not always mature well 
before winter, they are objected to by many. 

(c) Root grafting. The grape is now extensively root- 
grafted in some localities. A short section of root is cut 
wedge-form at the distal end and the wedge is inserted into 
the proximal end of a cutting made as directed for single- 
eye cuttings. The union is then wound with a grafting 
9 



130 Lessons ■zV?- Fruit Growing. 

plaster, after which the grafts are set upright in boxes 
about 1 by 2 feet and 2 inches deep, and placed in bottom 
heat, as described for single-bud cuttiugs. The grafts re- 
quire less care than do cuttings. 

(d) Croivn graftiyig the grape in the open ground is 
sometimes practiced, though the attempt is often unsuccess- 
ful. The graft is inserted in the crown of the root, or in 
the root below the crown, either early in spring, before the 
" bleeding " season, or in autumn. The cleft graft is mostly 
used and the parts are bound together without waxing. 
In all cases, the union should be protected from the weather, 
either by covering directly with soil or, when the work is 
done in autumn, by first covering with an inverted flower 
pot and burying this in soil. 

Young vines grown from layers or cuttings are com- 
monly left in the nursery one season before being planted 
in the vineyard. They should be trained to a single shoot, 
which should be tied to an upright stake. Strong vines 
of vigorous varieties often make a growth of 6 or more feet 
the first season. 

189. Preparation of soil and planting. The soil for the 
vineyard should be well prepared by thorough plowing 
and harrowing, and by rolling if need be. A moderate 
degree of fertility is best. The rows may be laid off as 
directed for laying out orchards (26). They may be 7 
or 8 feet apart, according to the vigor of the variety; or 
the rows may be placed uniformly eight feet apart, and the 
distance between the vines varied to suit their vigor. The 
less vigorous varieties, like Delaware and Catawba, may be 
planted 7 or 8 feet apart, while the stronger-growing vari- 
eties, like Worden and Concord, may be set 9 or 10 feet 
apart. When planted on sloping ground, the rows should be 
run at right angles to the slope. Where the slope is suf- 



The Graj)e. 131 

ficieutlj steep to require surface drainage, an occasional 
row should be omitted to give room for drains. The vines 
may he planted in spring or autumn, hut in the latter 
case the tops should be covered vrith earth until spring. 
The canes should be cut back to 2 or 3 buds at planting, 
and by whatever method the vines are to be trained, the 
strongest shoots should be tied upright to a stake the first 
season, all other shoots being rubbed off as they appear. 

190. Fruiting: habit. The grape vine fruits chiefly on 
shoots from the preceding season's growth. Blossoms ap- 
pear at a few of the more proximal buds of such shoots 
soon after growth starts in spring. Other blossoms often 
appear later, farther out on the shoots, but these later flow- 
ers are probably formed in spring, and seldom mature 
fruit. Shoots from wood two or more years old may also 
blossom, but these seldom mature good bunches. The 
grape, unlike the tree fruits, produces no distinguishable 
flower buds, but the embryo leaves and flowers are enclosed 
within the same bud scales. 

The vine commonly begins bearing at three years after 
planting, and should produce one or two bunches on each 
shoot that is permitted to grow. 

191. Pruning and training:. The grape vine is a rampant 
grower and in its wild state climbs upon trees, -fruiting on 
its outermost branches. In culture, we are compelled to 
restrict this rampant growth; hence severe cutting back is 
necessary, and some method of pruning must be employed 
that produces annually a number of vigorous canes 2iear the 
base of the vine. The European grape fruits freely in many 
countries when the new growth is permitted to spread upon 
the ground, but the American species are satisfactory only 
when the young shoots are supported upon a suitable trellis. 



132 Lessons in Fruit Growing, 

Pruning refers to tlie removal of parts of the vine. Train- 
ing refers to tlie placing upon the trellis of the parts that 
are left. 

A growing, leafy branch of the grape vine is commonly 
called a shoot. A ripened shoot is called a cane. A branch 
two or more years old is called an arm. A branch of an. 
arm older than a cane is called a s'pur. 

A shoot normally starts in spring from each bud of last 
year's wood, and continues to grow throughout the sum- 
mer. At each leaf of the shoot a bud is normally pro- 
duced, from which new fruit-bearing shoots may grow the 
next spring. If all these buds were allowed to remain, the 
vine would produce the next season more flower clusters 
thau it could properly mature, which would result in a 
large number of poorly-developed bunches, and a weak- 
ened vine. The canes are therefore cut back until they 
bear only as many buds as experience has shown the vine 
can properly develop. The number of buds that should be 
left will depend upon the variety, the age and vigor of the 
vine, the character and exposure of the soil, the cultivation 
given and the method of pruning and training adopted. 
Experience must be the chief guide. A mature vine of the 
Concord grape, which is a vigorous and prolific variety, 
planted 9 or 10 feet from its neighbors, on good soil, with 
favorable exposure, pruned and trained by any of the ordi- 
nary systems, will usually develop 30 to 60 clusters weigh- 
ing one-fourth to half a pound ' each. It follows that 
such a vine should have from 15 to 30 bearing shoots, and 
hence should be cut back at the annual pruning to from 15 
to 30 buds, the number depending on the health and vigor 
of the vine. All the wood of the previous season's growth 
is therefore cut away, except sufficient to contain 15 to 30 



The Gra^e. 133 

buds. Tbe properlj'-pruned vine does not, therefore, in- 
crease in size in proportion to the annual growth, as do 
most other perennial plants. These buds may be left on 
one or more canes according to the method of pruning em- 
ployed. A vine that completely covered the trellis in 
autumn will need to be cut back to one rather long cane, 
or two or more shorter canes. 

192. Methods of training:. It is important that the op- 
erations of pruning and training be kept distinct in the 
mind. In the winter or spring pruning, the vine may be 
cut back in such a manner as to leave only the ripened 
shoots of the previous year {canes) (191) for producing the 
next season's crop, or wood older than that of the preced- 
ing year {arms), with stubs of younger wood [sptirs), may be 
left; or a combination of canes, arms and spurs may be 
left, and all of these methods of pruning may be used with 
any system of training. 

Numerous more or less distinct methods of training have 
been practiced and described, but all may be referred to 
two classes, viz. : the upright methods, in which the shoots 
are tied to the trellis above the cane, arm or spur whence 
they grow; and the drooping methods, in which the shoots 
are not tied to the trellis, but hang from the cane, arm, or 
spur. The upright methods are more numerous than the 
drooping methods and have been longer in use. They are 
somewhat more expensive in practice since the shoots re- 
quire to be tied. 

193. The single-post method is the simplest kind of 
upright training. In this, the canes and shoots are all tied 
to a single post set near the base of the vine. The merits 
of this method are its cheapness and that it admits cultiva- 
tion of the vineyard in both directions. It does not give 



134: Lessons in Fruit Growing. 

sufficient room for the development eitlier of foliage or 
bunches, and probably favors certain fungous diseases by 
obstructing free circulation of air about the fruit. 

In the other upright systems, two canes or arms are 
tied to the lower wire or bar of the trellis, so as to ex- 
tend in opposite directions, and from these the shoots 
are tied to the trellis as they attain sufficient length. The- 
older methods of this class of training employed arms 
which continued from year to year, and the shoots were 
annually cut back to one or two buds (spurs). By this 
method, a considerable part of the vine remained from 
year to year; and since shoots grown from old wood are 
usually unproductive, the fruitfulness of the vine could 
only be maintained by permitting the spurs to become 
longer at each cutting back. This is objectionable be- 
cause it annually reduces the room on the trellis. To 
avoid these objections, a method has been adopted by 
which strong canes are substituted for the horizontal arms,, 
thus renewing the entire vine each season, with the excep- 
tion of the trunk and a few spurs at its summit. 

194. The higll renewal method, which is now exten- 
sively employed, starts the bead or branches of the vine 
18 to 30 inches from the ground, the lower wire or bar of 
the trellis being placed at this height. For training by 
this method, the single strong cane secured from the young 
vine at the end of the first or second year after planting^ 
is cut back in autumn to the height of the lower wire or 
bar of the trellis. The next spring (the second year of 
training) two shoots are permitted to grow from the up- 
permost buds on this cut-back cane, and all other buds are 
rubbed off. These two shoots are tied to the lower arm of 
the trellis and are permitted to grow upward without 
pinching during the season, being tied to the upper wires 



The Grape. 



135 



as they acquire sufficient length. In autumn, these canes 
are cut back to firm and strong wood, which will usually 
leave them bearing from 5 to 8 buds each. The following 
spring (the third season of training) these canes are tied 
to the lower wire of the trellis, and the shoots which grow 
from the nodes of these canes are tied to the upper wires 
as they gain sufficient length, and are permitted to take 
care of themselves after passing the uppermost wire. 
(Fig. 37.) In the stronger varieties, they often lop over 




Fig. 37. Grape vine trained by high-renewal system. (From Bailey's 
"Pruning Book.") 

and reach the ground late in the season, but they should 
not be cut off unless the needs of cultivation demand it, 
andthen the cutting should be delayed as long as possi- 
ble. These upright shoots may be expected to bear 1 or 2 
bunches each, the number depending upon the variety 
and the vigor of the vine. Thus the vine commences to 
bear fruit the third year of training. 

The pruning at the close of the third season will consist, 
in cutting off both of the horizontal canes from which the 
upright shoots grew, as near the trunk of the vine as pos- 
sible and yet leave two of the stronger upright shoots 
(which have now become canes) as near the top of the. 
trunk as possible. This reduces the wood at once to two 
strong canes which have their origin near the top of the 



136 Lessons in Fruit Growing. 

trunk. These canes are now cut back to strong and sound 
wood, and the process of the preceding year is repeated. 

This method of training requires the production of two 
strong canes near the top of the trunk each season. But 
as a portion of the wood of the preceding year must be left 
at each cutting back, spurs are soon formed at the top of 
the trunk. It often happens that neither of the canes 
starting from these spurs is strong enough for laying down 
as a main cane the next spring. In this case, the nearest 
cane to the trunk that is sufficiently strong is chosen, and 
the weaker cane near the top of the trunk is cut back to 
two buds, from which strong shoots may be expected to 
grow the following season. 

As the vine acquires age, a strong shoot may be trained 
up from the base from time to time and treated precisely 
as a young vine. The second year thereafter, the old vine 
may be cut away at the surface of the ground and the 
younger trunk trained to take its place. 

195. The Kniffen system. The principal drooping 
method of training was first used by one William Kniffen 
in the Hudson River 
valley about 1854, and 
hence has received his 
name. The original 
Kniffen system em- 
ployed a trellis with 
two Avires only, of 

which the lower wire ^^'^- ^^- Grape ^ne trained by Kniffen system. 

The cross-marks show wbere the branches should 

was usually placed 82- be qut off in pruning. (From BaUey's" Pruning 

feet from the ground Book.") 

and the upper about 2 feet above this. A single stem or trunk 
of the vine is carried directly to the top wire and two canes 
are trained outward from side spurs ut each wire (Fig. 38). 




The Grajpe, 



137 



Thus the vine lias four horizontal canes tied to two wires 
instead of two tied to one wire as in the method previously 
described. These canes are at such a distance from the 
ground that shoots growing from them hang down instead 
of growing upright, and hence require no tying. Thus 
the labor of caring for the vines during summer is greatly 
lessened. 

The pruning of vines trained by the KuifPen system is 
very similar to that in the upright method described. All 
is cut away save the four canes which hang nearest the 
trunk. These four canes are then cut back to strong wood 
and are tied to the wires the following spring (Fig. 39). 

In case the canes nearest the trunk are not strong enough 
for main canes, they may be cut back to one or two buds 

(spurs), and the next 
cane ■ used that is 
sufficiently strong. 
The following sea- 
son, the shoots 
growing from these 
spurs may be ex- 
pected to regain 
their vigor. As the 
vine acquires age, it is customary to prune the canes tied to 
the upper wire longer than the lower ones. In strong varie- 
ties like Worden, each of the upper canes may bear 10 
buds, and each of the lower ones 5, which gives 30 buds to 
the vine. 

Vines pruned by the Kniffen system are commonly 
grown to stakes the first two seasons, and the canes are put 
upon the trellis the third season. The vine is usually car- 
ried directly to the top wire the first season of training, 




Fig. 39. The vine shown in Fig. 38 after pruning. 
(From Bailey's "Pruning Book.'") 



138 Lessons in Fruit Groioing. 

though some growers stop the trunk at the lower wire the 
third season, carrying it Lo the top wire the following 
year. 

196. When to prune. The annual pruning maybe per- 
formed at any time after the leaves mature, until frost 
leaves the ground in spring. In severe climates, where 
winter protection is necessary, the pruning is best per- 
formed before the grapes are laid down for winter. The 
work is commonly done with small pruning shears. 

19t, Summer pruning. Whatever method of pruning 
is adopted, more or less attention is required during sum- 
mer to prevent the growth of superfluous shoots. Weak 
shoots often start out at the base of the main shoots, or of 
the trunk; these should be promptly rubbed off, unless 
needed for a special purpose. The flower clusters usually 
need more or less thinning. Three or more are ofteu 
formed on a single shoot, while one or two good bunches 
are all that one shoot should be expected to develop, ex- 
cept in the most vigorous varieties. 

198. Trellises for the gfrape. The most common trellises 
in use consist of one or more wires attached horizontally 
to posts set midway between each alternate two vines. 
Except in very hard and stony land, all the posts are com- 
monly driven but the end ones, which are usually set. For 
the upright methods, the posts should reach 5 or 5^ feet 
above the soil; for the KnifiFen system they should reach a 
foot higher. The posts should stand a little higher at first 
than is necessary for the support of the wires, for they will 
need to be driven down occasionally as they become loose. 
The end posts of each trellis should be well braced. Plain 
No. 12 wire is commonly used, except for the top wire in, 
the Kniffen training, which is usually No. 10. The wires-, 



The Graj>e. 13^ 

are generally wound once around the end posts and their 
ends secured by staples, or bent around the wire forming a 
loop. They are secured to the intermediate posts by staples 
driven in far enough so that the wire will not pull through 
readily, but not so firmly as to prevent tightening the 
wires. In windy regions the wires should be placed upon 
the windward side of the posts. It is generally found 
necessary to tighten the wires and posts as they become 
loose, and it is wise to tamp the ground about the posts 
each spring. 

For upright training, the trellis is usually begun the fall 
or winter following the planting of the vineyard. With 
the KniflFen system it may be delayed a year longer. 

199. Tying. Raffia, wool twine, osier willows, green rye 
straw, corn husks and bass-wood bark are all used for tying. 
Of these, raffia is perhaps the most satisfactory, though 
more expensive than some of the others. A stronger ma- 
terial is needed for tying the canes to the wires in the 
spring than for summer tying. 

It is important that the canes be tied to the wires early 
in spring, to prevent injury to the buds by the moving of 
the canes by the wind. These canes should be tied firmly^ 
but the shoots tied during the summer may be fastened 
more loosely. 

200. Harmful insects. While the grape is more or less 
injured by a number of insects, few of these are sufficiently 
destructive in this country to require special notice. The 
phylloxera {Phylloxera vastatrix), so destructive to the Eu- 
ropean grape, is but slightly injurious to our native species. 
The foliage is more or less injured by several large beetles 
and caterpillars, but as these seldom appear in large numbers, 
and are rather conspicuous, they are readily controlled. 



140 



Lessons in Fruit Growing. 




201. The rose beetle {Macrodactylus suhspinosus) (Fig. 
40) is sometimes very destructive to the foliage of the 
grape in early summer. While it eats 
the foliage voraciously, it is not readily 
destroyed by poisons sprayed upon the 
leaves. As the beetles are naturally slug- 
gish, they are easily shaken from the vines pi^. 4,,. Rose beetle, 
npon sheets in the early morning, as de- natural size. (After 
scribed for the plum curculio (99). 

202. The grape-vine leaf-hopper {Enjthroneura vitis), 
improperly known among grape growers as the " thrip " 
(Fig. 41), is often injurious to the foliage of the grape late 
in summer. It is a 
small insect of the 
sucking class and 
works chiefly on the 
lower side of the 
leaves. The conse- 
quent exhaustion of 

the sap causes yel- Fig. 41. Grape-vine leaf-hopper, enlarged; nat- 
I ___•!- _ , hroWTlish ural size indicated by short lines. (After Saunders.) 

spots on the upper side of the leaves, which later increase in 
size, often covering the whole surface. In a severe attack, 
the foliage over an entire vineyard may appear as if 
scorched and may even drop, thus greatly retarding or pre- 
venting the ripening of the fruit. 

This insect is rather difficult to control owing to its 
quick movements. Thorough spraying with dilute kero- 
sene, taking care to wet both sides of the leaves, will de- 
stroy vast numbers of them. As they are attracted by 
light, many may be destroyed by carrying lighted torches 
through the vineyard, and disturbing the foliage to dis- 




The Gi'wpe. 141 

lodge them. As the insects pass the winter under dead 
leaves and other rubbish, many may be destroyed by rak- 
ing these materials from the vineyard late in autumn or 
early in spring. 

203. The principal fungous diseases attacking the grape 
are the black rot {Lcestadia BidiveUii), the downy mildew 
{Peronospera viticola), the powdery mildew {Uncinula spi- 
ralis) and the anthracnose {SpJiaceloma ampelinum). These 
all attack both the foliage and the fruit, and are propagated 
by spores deposited on these parts. They are often very 
destructive unless prevented by timely treatments. 

204. The black rot is one of the most serious diseases of 
the grape, especially in the south. Some of the symptoms 
on the shoots are dark, oval, slightly-sunken areas, of 
which the centers are thickly studded with very small 
pimples. The affected parts of the leaves are generally be- 
tween the veins, have rounded outlines and are of a dark, 
reddish-brown color. The fruits are commonly attacked 
when nearly or quite full-grown. The part affected is 
blackened and characteristic pimples appear; the berry 
shrivels and becomes strongly ridged and the seeds project 
prominently under the drawn skin; the entire berry is 
then black, with minute elevations thickly scattered over 
it. In warm, moist weather the disease progresses very 
rapidly, greatly reducing the crop in a few days. Individ- 
ual berries in the cluster often escape harm. 

Preventive measures. Three thorough sprayings with 
Bordeaux mixture, the first beginning as soon as the ear- 
lier leaves are expanded, the second after the vines have 
blossomed, and the third 2 to 4 weeks later, largely prevent 
the attack. If the weather is warm and wet, later spray- 
ings, 10 to 14 days apart, will be necessary. After the ber- 



142 Lessons in Fruit Grovjing. 

ries are tliree-fourtlis grown, ammoniacal solution of cop- 
per carbonate is preferable to Bordeaux mixture, as it 
stains tlie fruit less.' In the north, where the attacks are 
not so severe, the treatments need not begin until July 1st, 
and two later sprayings at intervals of 2 or 3 weeks usu- 
ally prevent damage. 

205. The downy mildew, also called hrown rot and gray 
rot, is more common than the black rot in the northern 
states. Like the latter, it is most serious in warm, wet 
seasons. Some of its symptoms are light-green patches 
upon both sides of the leaves, which later become yellow, 
and still later change to brown. As the spots become yel- 
low upon the upper side of the leaf, a frost-like substance 
projects from the discolored part on the under side. The 
affection of the leaf is often accompanied by broAvn, 
slightly-sunken areas on the shoots. The fruit is often 
attacked, if at all, before the berries are half-grown. Af- 
fected berries first become brown and later are covered 
with a whitish powder. 

Treatment. In localities subject to this disease, an ap- 
plication of Bordeaux mixture should be made when the 
shoots have grown 6 to 10 inches, to be followed by a sec- 
ond application after the vines have blossomed, and later 
sprayings should succeed each other at intervals of 2 to 4 
weeks, depending upon the season. The later treatments 
may be made with ammoniacal solution of copper carbon- 
ate to prevent staining the fruit. 

206. The powdery mildew develops most rapidly in 
rather dry weather. It is a surface-growing fungus which 
appears mainly upon the upper surface of the leaves, form- 

1 Directions for making Bordeaux mixture and ammoniacal solution of cop- 
per carbonate are given in " Principles of Plant Culture." 



The Grape. 143 

ing wliitisli patches from which the miklew maybe rubbed 
off, disclosing brown tissue beneath. Similar spots appear 
upon affected berries. 

Treatment for this disease may be postponed until the 
symptoms appear. Bordeaux mixture or ammoniacal solu- 
tion of copper carbonate, sprayed upon the affected parts, 
usually prevents serious damage. 

20t. Anthracnose is often very destructive to the grape. 
It may appear any time during the growing season, but 
most commonly affects the berries during the middle and 
latter part of summer. The shoots are commonly attacked, 
and the first indication of the disease is a darkening and 
sinking of small, oval areas extending lengthwise of the 
stem. These may be very numerous, giving the shoots a 
speckled appearance. The spots gradually enlarge and the 
center assumes a gray color, while the dark edges take on 
a more or less decided tinge of purple. In severe cases, the 
shoot may be wholly destroyed. Upon the leaf, the disease 
usually attacks the veins and leaf-stems, producing similar 
marks to those upon the shoots, but with a reddish-brown 
color. The disease also often girdles the stems of the clus- 
ters, causing an affection known as " ring-around." The 
berries below this ring do not ripen and gradually shrivel. 
On the berries the attack is marked by circular, sunken, 
brown spots, bordered with red or purple. 

Treatment. The vines and trellises may be washed dur- 
ing winter or early spring with a solution of sulfuric acid 
and sulfate of iron, consisting of one hundred parts of hot 
water, in which is placed as much iron sulfate as the water 
will dissolve, and one part of sulfuric acid. This solution, 
which is ver}' caustic, is applied with a swab of rags tied 
about the end of a stick. The solution blackens the treated 



144: Lessons in Fruit Growing, 

parts, hence tlie color of the latter is a test of the thorough- 
ness of the work. Applications of Bordeaux mixture dur- 
ing summer for other diseases are also beneficial in prevent- 
ing anthracnose. 

208. Harvesting: and packing:. The fruit of the grape 
does not improve in quality after it is removed from the 
vine, hence it should not be gathered until as mature as it 
will become in the climate in which it is grown. 

The fruit should be picked only when dry. The picker 
should take the cluster by the stem, cutting it off with a 
pair of shears and placing it in the picking tray with the 
least possible touching of the fruit (16). y 

The grapes should be removed directly from the picking 
tray to the market package, all imperfect berries being 
taken off in the meantime. Grapes are commonly packed 
in the so-called " Climax" basket, which is made of vari- 
ous styles and sizes (Fig. 25). In packing, the greatest 
care should be used to keep the fruit clean and fresh, to 
prevent the bunches from being broken and to preserve 
the bloom. 

Grapes intended for long keeping should be stored in a 
moderately dry apartment in which the temperature is 
uniform and rather low. The grapes should be as nearly 
as possible of the temperature of the room when placed in 
it. Ventilation should be given only on dry days and 
when the outside temperature differs little from that of the 
room. 

209. Winter protection of the grape vine is essential in 
climates having severe winters. This is accomplished by 
laying the pruned vine upon the ground and covering it 
with soil, straw or corn stalks. The former is most com- 
monly used, as it is cheapest, and does not attract mice. 



Summary of the Preceding Chapter. 145 

To prevent breaking the stem, a little earth should be re- 
moved from the roots at the base of the trunk in order that 
the strain of bending may come chiefly on the roots. 

SUMMARY OF THE PEECEDING CHAPTER 

1. The grapes now grown in the United States and Can- 
ada are chieflj'' of American origin. The European grape 
is grown extensively in the far southwest (186). 

2. The grape requires a warm and prolonged summer 
temperature. In the north, a southern exposure, free from 
untimely frosts, and a perfectly-drained, light, loamy soil 
are most favorable (187). 

3. The grape is mostly propagated by cuttings or layers. 
Root grafting is practiced in some localities; crown graft- 
ing is little practiced (188). 

4. The grape is commonly planted in rows, 7 or 8 feet 
apart, the vines being set 7 to 10 feet apart in the row. 
The soil should be of moderate fertility and well prepared 
(189). 

5. The grape vine fruits chiefly on young shoots from 
wood formed the preceding season. It commonly begins 
fruiting the third year after planting (190). 

6. The grape vine, being a rampant grower, must be se- 
verely pruned. The American varieties fruit well only 
when the stems are trained upon a suitable trellis (191). 

7. The different methods of training the grape vine may 
be reduced to two, viz., the upright methods, in which the 
stems are tied low on the trellis, and the shoots are tied 
above, as they grow; and the drooping methods, in which 
the stems are tied high on the trellis, and the shoots are 
permitted to hang from them (192). 

8. The most important upright training method is the 

10 



146 Lessons in Fruit Groioing. 

" higli renewal" (194); the most important drooping method 
is the " Kniffen " (195). 

9. The annual pruning of the grape vine may be per- 
formed any time from the maturing of the leaves in au- 
tumn until frost leaves the ground in spring (196). Sum- 
mer pruning is also needed (197). 

10. The trellis most in use for the grape consists of one 
or more wires attached horizontally to posts set midway 
between each alternate two vines (198). 

11. The principal insect enemies to the grape vine in. 
the United States and Canada are the grape-vine leaf- 
hopper and the rose beetle. The former is held in check 
by spraying with dilute kerosene, by carrying lighted 
torches through the vineyard at night, and by removing the 
fallen leaves, etc., beneath the vines in late autumn. The 
latter insect may be destroyed as recommended for the plum 
curculio (201, 202). 

12. The principal fungous diseases attacking the grape 
are the black rot, downy mildew, powdery mildew and 
anthracnose. The first three are prevented by spraying 
with Bordeaux mixture; the fourth, by washing the vines 
and trellises in winter or early spring with a solution of 
sulfuric acid and sulfate of iron in water (203, 207).'. ■ 

13. Grapes should be gathered when dry and fully ma- 
ture, with the least possible touching of the fruit. They 
are commonly j)acked in the Climax basket (208). 

14. The grape vine may be protected in winter by cover- 
ing the stems with earth (209). 

SUGGESTIONS FOE LABORATOKT WOEK 

1. Ascertain the difiPerent species of grape that grow 
wild in your vicinity. 



Suggestions for Lahoratory ^VoTh. 147 

2. Practice propagating the grape vine by cuttings, laj^- 
-ers and grafting, so far as the season permits. 

3. Practice pruning the grape, for different systems of 
training, both on young and bearing vines, so far as the 
season admits. 

4. Practice training the grape by one or more of the 
upright and drooping systems. 

5. Study the diseases of the grape vine and appV the 
preventives given, so far as practicable. 

6. Practice packing the grape in baskets, if the season 
permits. 

7. Practice crossing different varieties and species of the 
grape vine, so far as the season permits. 



148 



Lessons in Fvitit Growing, 



CHAPTER ly 

THE SMALL FRUITS 

210. The small fruits, so-called, include several fruit 
plants of ■which the fruits are small in size and grow upon 
shrubs or herbaceous plants. The term is a cultural one 
and has no reference to botanical characters. It includes 
the fruits that are called in common parlance " berries " 
and also the currant. For convenience we sub-divide the 
small fruits into (a) the brambles, including the raspberry, 
blackberry and dewberry; (b) the cjroselles, including the 
currant and gooseberry; (c) the strawberry; (d) the cran- 
berry and (e) a miscellaneous group, including all others 
commonly classed with the small fruits. 

211. Pickini: and packing. With the exception of the 
cranberry (273), the small fruits are commonly marketed in 
small baskets or boxes holding about a quart or a pint 
(Fig. 42). These are packed in cases or crates to the num- 




- " ' I " ' — — — 1-" ^ 



Fig. 42. Berry bos and the two pieces of which it is made. A, complete box; 
b, piece forming the bottom; c, piece forming the sides. 

ber of 16, 24, 32 or 48 in each (Fig. 43). The boxes and 
crates are commonly purchased in the ''knock-down" 



The Small Fruits. 



149 



form, i. e., tlie parts not set up or nailed together, and are 
put in shape for use on the fruit plantation. Stapling ma- 
chines are used by large growers for nailing up the boxes. 
Boys, girls and women are generally employed for pick- 
ing the small fruits. 




Fig. 43. Case or crate in wMcli the filled boxes are marketedL 
The empty boxes are commonly placed in the case bottom upward. 

The fruits are commonly picked directly into the boxes 
in which they are marketed, but one quality being made 
though strawberries are sometimes assorted during picking 
into two grades. All leaves, straws or dirt must be kept 
out of the boxes in picking, and the pickers must be com- 
pelled to keep their own rows. The boxes are carried in 
the field in light, handled trays holding 4 or 6 boxes, and 
for the bramble fruits, a small frame, in which a box may 
be placed, attached to a belt, is sometimes buckled about 
the waist, to enable the use of both hands in picking. 

The pickers are commonly paid by the box, though some 
growers prefer to pay by the day or hour. When paid by 
the box, the accounts with the pickers may be kept by 
giving each picker a printed ticket on which a number 
corresponds to the number of filled boxes delivered, or each 
picker may be given a card, with his name written on it, 
on which the number of filled boxes delivered by the picker 



150 Lessons in Fruit Growing. 

may be punched by the foreman with a conductor's punchy 
In settling with the pickers, the tickets or cards are re- 
tained by the foreman. 

A small, portable, canvas-covered building or tent is very 
useful in the small-fruit field, to serve as a temporary shel- 
ter for the gathered fruit and for packing. 

Section 1. — The Bramble Fruits. 

212. The brambles are in a sense intermediate between 
an herb and a shrub, i. e., the root is perennial, but the 
stems die nearly back to the crown the second season of 
their life, after maturing a single crop of fruit. The stems 
of the cultivated brambles are, with a few exceptions, more 
or less prickly. 

The cultivated brambles include the following botanical 
species : 

(a) The American red raspberry {Rubus strigosus). 

(b) The European red raspberry [Rubus idceus). 

(c) The blackberry {Rubus nigrobaccus). 

(d) The blackcap raspberry (Rubus occidentalis). 

(e) The northern dewberry {Rubus villosus). 

(f) The purple-cane raspberry {Rubus negledus). 
Rubus negledus is supposed to be a hj^brid between 

Rubus strigosus and R. occidentalis. A few other species of 
Rubus are cultivated to a slight extent in the United States. 

The common names "red" and " black," as applied to 
the fruit of these species tend to be misleading, since white- 
or yellow-fruited varieties are knownin all of the species ex- 
cept Rubus negledus, and there are two species of raspberry 
in which the fruit is commonly red. 

The canes of the first three species grow upright through- 
out the season. Those of the second three grow more or 



The Small Fruits. 151 

less upright during the first part of the growing season, 
but later the stems droop to the earth, at least near their 
tips, and if the conditions are favorable, the tips take 
root in the soil. 

As the methods of culture of the different bramble fruits 
are similar, it is convenient to treat them all at the same 
time. 

213. Propagation. Plants of the first three species 
above named are readily propagated by suckers from the 
roots, especially when the latter are cut. 

Plants of the second three species are, as a rule, readily 
propagated by layering the tips of the canes in late sum- 
mer or early autumn. Plants thus layered should form 
abundant roots and a strong bud before winter. The time 
for layering is indicated by the tips becoming slightly 
thickened and growing without leaves. On well-cultivated 
soil, many tips will root without assistance in seasons of 
frequent rains, but the tips are much more likely to root 
if covered with soil. After rooting, the parent stem may 
be severed, and the young plants taken up and perma- 
nently planted late in the autumn or early the following 
spring. It is said that better-rooted plants of all of the 
species may be obtained from cuttings of the roots an inch 
or more in length, started under glass with mild bottom 
heat. These root cuttings are preferably made in autumn, 
packed in sand in shallow boxes and stored for callusing in 
a cool cellar until February or March, when they are 
planted in the propagating bed. 

214. Planting. The bramble fruits are commonly planted 
3 or 4 feet apart, in rows 6 or 7 feet apart. The black- 
berry and the larger-growing raspberries should be given 
the wider distance. In handling the young plants care 



152 Lessons in Fruit Growing. 

should be taken not to injure the hud at the crown, as growth, 
of the stem must proceed from this bud. 

215. Fruiting: Mbit. In the cultivated brambles the 
young plant, which is commonly a bud offset from the 
parent rather than a seedling, develops a single shoot the 
first season. The following spring, the lateral buds of this 
shoot that escaped injury during the winter, with the ex- 
ception of two or three near the base, grow out into leafy 
branches, of which the terminal and axillary buds develop 
into flowers. Thus the plants begin to fruit the second 
year, but the first crop, growing from a single caue, is 
small. The second crop maj^ be as large as any succeeding 
one. The flowers are followed by the thimble-like, com- 
posite fruits. After these mature, the stem dies back to the 
basil buds above mentioned, which in the meantime have 
developed into vigorous shoots destined, in like manner, to 
fruit and perish the following season. 

The fruit consists of a collection of small drupes (drupe- 
lets), attached to a common receptacle. In the blackberry 
and dewberry, the receptacle separates from the plant with 
the ripe fruit; in the other species the ripe fruit separates 
from the receptacle. 

216. Soil and culture. The bramble fruits thrive on 
any good farm land and are most continuously productive 
on land that is maintained in a moderate degree of fertil- 
ity. On very strong soils, the canes grow to excessive 
size and yield proportionately less fruit than on moder- 
ately fertile soil. The only culture required is to keep the 
soil free from weeds, and the surface loose. In the sucker- 
ing species (213), the superfluous suckers should be treated 
as weeds. Mulching is advisable in localities subject to 
drought in summer and autumn. Deep plowing between 



The Small Fruits. 153 

tlie rows should be avoided, as it is liable to cut off main 
roots. 

2ir. Duration of the plantation. The plants of the 
bramble fruits lose vigor and the crowns become very 
large after 4 or 5 crops of fruit have matured. It is there- 
fore best to renew the plantation once in 5 or 6 years. 

218. Pruning:. As each cane (191) of the bramble fruits 
develops one or more shoots from near its base, the num- 
ber of canes tends to increase rapidly ac the plant acquires 
age. It is therefore important to thin out the canes after 
the second year. The number of canes to be left depends 
upon conditions; probably 3 to 6 would be best for the 
majority of plantations. 

It is customary to pinch the tips of the shoots of the 
blackberry and blackcap raspberry as they attain the 
height of 12 to 24 inches to induce a stocky, branching 
growth. Recent experiments have failed to demonstrate 
the importance of pinching the raspberry, especially where 
winter protection is practiced. The pinched canes bore 
scarcely enough more fruit to pay for the labor of pinch- 
ing, while the expense of covering them for winter was 
much increased. Shoots pinched lower than 24 inches 
yielded no more fruit than unpinched ones. Pinching un- 
questionably stimulates the production of shoots. 

The dead fruiting canes of the bramble fruits are com- 
monly cut off and removed after the berry harvest or before 
the following spring. Where the raspberry cane-borer (223) 
is troublesome, it is important to remove and burn the dead 
bearing canes soon after the fruiting season, to destroy any 
larvae they may contain; — otherwise experiments indicate 
that it is better to postpone removing the dead canes until 
autumn, or, in case winter protection is not practiced, until 
the succeeding spring. 



154: 



Lessons in Fruit Growing. 



219. Trellising. The plants of the bramble fruits are^ 
often grown without staking or trellising, but some sup- 
port, to prevent the canes from undue spreading or trailing, 
is desirable, especially with the blackberry and the black- 
cap raspberry. For this purpose, a wire supported 2 or 3 
feet high on each side of the row, upon short stakes, or 
upon a horizontal piece nailed to a single post, is well 
adapted (Fig. 44). The canes are not tied to the wires, but 
are directed so that they 
grow between them. 
Where winter protec- 
tion is practiced, the 
wires may be readily re- 
moved for laying down 
the canes. The cross 
pieces above the wires 
are to keep the latter 
from spreading and the 
canes from getting out 
of place. 

The canes of the dew- 
berry are commonly per- 
mitted to creep along the ground. Sometimes the bearing^ 
canes are supported on low, horizontal trellises made of 
lath, to better expose the fruit to light and. to aid in» 
gathering it. 

220. Winter protection. In climates where the apple 
and grape suffer in winter, the canes of the bramble fruits 
are not fully hardy unless protected by a covering of earth 
or litter. The more common method of winter protection 
is similar to that described for the grape (209). 

221. Picking and packing:. The bramble fruits con- 
tinue to improve in flavor until ripe enough to drop. 




Fig. 44. 



Trellis for the raspberry and black- 
berry. 



The Small Fruits. 155 

They should be gathered a little before this stage of ripe- 
ness for market, but raspberries picked for drying are often 
allowed to remain on the plants until they can be jarred 
off into a sort of hopper by striking them lightly with an 
instrument resembling a carpet beater. In the latter case 
the dried berries are run through a machine resembling a 
fanning mill to separate them from foreign matters. 

222. Insects and diseases. As several harmful parasites 
affect two or more of the bramble fruits, it is convenient to 
treat the parasites of all the species in one group. 

223. The raspberry cane-borer {Oherea Umacidata) lays 
eggs in the young shoots of raspberries in early summer, 
causing the tips to wilt. The egg soon hatches if undis- 
turbed, and the grub burrows downward through the pith, 
reaching the root in autumn. The wilted tips should be 
cut off below the injured part and burned. Canes of which 
the leaves are found wilting during late summer should also 
be cut out and burned. 

224. The raspberry slug or saw-fly [Selandria ruU) 
sometimes devours the foliage during May and early June. 
It may be destroyed by spraying the foliage with water 
containing hellebore, or with dilute kerosene. 

225. The tree cricket {(Ecanthus niveus) lays its eggs in 
a rather conspicuous longitudinal row, in the canes in au- 
tumn, weakening them so that they are liable to be broken 
by wind (Fig. 45). The only preventive known is to cut 
out and burn the affected canes. These are most readily 
detected when the -leaves are off. 

226. A small fly, Diastrophus nebidosus, sometimes lays 
its eggs in canes of the blackberry causing maggots to in- 
fest the pith. The canes when thus attacked form large, 
dark, conspicuous, red or reddish-brown, longitudinally- 



156 



Lessons in Fruit Growing. 



furrowed galls, which weaken the cane and destroy its 
functions. Such canes should be cut out and burned dur- 
ing autumn and early winter. 

22lr. The anthracnose [Gloeosporium 
necator) is a fungous disease that at- 
tacks the young canes of raspberries, 
blackberries and dewberries during the 
latter part of June and through July, 
beginning toward the base of the cane ^ 
and forming circular or oval, sunken, 
gray spots, bordered by a distinct pur- 
ple rim. In severe cases the canes 
crack and may be wholly destroyed. 
The leaves may also be more or less at- 
tacked. 

Anthracnose has not as yet been fully 
prevented by treatment. Thorough 
spraying, before the buds swell in the 
spring, with a solution of one pound 
of copper sulfate in 15 gallons of water, 
followed by thorough applications of 
Bordeaux mixture at intervals of two 
weeks until midsummer, has been rec- 
ommended. In severe attacks it is 
well to cut and burn all affected canes 
while the leaves are off. 

Some varieties are less subject to anthracnose than oth- 
ers; plantations on grounds not recently occupied by the 
bramble fruits often escape attack. 

228. The orange rust or red rust [Coeoma luminatum) 
attacks blackberries and raspberries. Its presence is indi- 
cated by small, pale-green wrinkled leaves, followed by a 
copious production of orange-colored spores on the under 




Fig. 45. Work of the 
tree cricket, a, row of 
punctures in cane: 6, 
same cut open, showing 
eggs; c, magnified eggs. 
(After Riley.) 



The Small Fruits. 157 

side of the leaves and on the stems. This disease appears 
to be communicated from one plant to another, especially 
when their roots or foliage are in contact. 

All affected plants should be promptly dug out by the 
roots and burned. 

229. The raspberry is used for dessert, canning, drying 
and jam, and is most important of the bramble fruits. Ifc 
succeeds the strawberry in season. The native species are 
now grown more or less throughout the United States and 
southern Canada, and, with winter protection, succeed as 
far north as any of our cultivated fruitg. The European 
raspberry was formerly considerably grown in the eastern, 
states, but as its canes are less hardy than those of our native 
species, its culture has been nearly abandoned. 

230. The blackberry, of which only one species is much 
cultivated, grows taller and stronger, and is commonly 
more fruitful than the raspberries. The oblong or cylin- 
drical, commonly black fruit is mostly borne in leafless 
racemes, and ripens as the raspberries are failing. The 
fruit is used for the same purposes as the raspberries, but is 
less popular. There is a variety having bright, yellowish- 
green canes and short amber- or cream-colored fruit. 

The blackberries fruit more extensively toward the ends 
of the branches than the raspberries, and hence the canes 
should be less cut back in spring than those of the rasp- 
berry. 

231. The dewberry. The cultivated dewberries (mostly 
Riibus villosus) commonly bear larger, more juicy and 
earlier-maturing fruit than the blackberry. Their cultiva- 
tion, while apparently on the increase, is less general than 
that of the raspberry and blackberry, probably owing to the 
expensive culture necessitated by their trailing habit (219). 



158 Lessons in Fruit Growing. 

SUMMAEY OF THE PRECEDIITG SECTION" 

1. The "small fruits" include the cultivated berries, the 
currant, the dwarf cherry and the gdumi (210). With the 
exception of the cranberry, all are packed for market in 
.small boxes or baskets which ai-e enclosed in crates (211). 

2. The bramble fruits include the raspberry, blackberry, 
■and dewberry (212). These are propagated either by suck- 
ers from the roots or by layering the tips of the branches. 
All may be propagated from root cuttings (213). 

3. The bramble fruits are commonly planted 6 or 7 feet 
apart, in rows 7 or 8 feet apart (214). The plants begin 
to fruit the second season after planting; the third season 
they should bear a full crop (215). 

4. The bramble fruits prove most continuously produc- 
tive on moderately rich land (216). The plantation should 
be renewed once in 5 or 6 years (217). 

5. The canes of the bramble fruits need more or less 
thinning after the second year. Three to 6 canes to a 
plant are sufficient. Shoots of the blackberry and black- 
cap raspberry are commonly pinched as they attain the 
height of 12 to 21 inches (218). 

6. Plants of the blackberry and blackcap raspberry are 
often trellised to keep the canes within bounds (219). The 
bramble fruits may be protected in winter, in severe cli- 
mates, in the manner described for the grape (220.) 

7. The bramble fruits continue to improve in quality 
until ripe enough to drop from the plant (221). 

8. The raspberry cane-borer may be destroyed by cutting 
off and burning the wilted tips and canes (223). The rasp- 
berry saw-fly may be destroj^ed by spraying with water con- 
taining hellebore or dilute kerosene (221). The tree cricket 
may be held in check by burning infested canes (225). 



The Small Fruits. 159 

9. Anthracnose of the bramble fruits may be held in 
check by cutting out and burning infested canes, and jilant- 
ing on new ground. Spraying is but partially successful 
{227). The orange rust may be controlled by promptly 
rooting out and burning all infested plants (228). 

10. The raspberry is most important of the bramble 
fruits (229). 

SUGGESTIONS POR LABORATORY WORK 

1. Study the growth habit of the bramble fruits, ascer- 
taining the source of the young shoots and of the fruiting 
branches, the natural methods of propagation of the dififer- 
<ent species, etc. 

2. Practice propagating the different species by root 
cuttings. 

3. Practice planting the young plants with the spade, 
in the manner illustrated for the strawberry in " Princi- 
ples of Plant Culture." 

4. Practice "tipping" the ends of the shoots of the 
blackcap raspberry for propagation. 

Section 2 — The Groselles.- 

232. The groselles include the currants and the goose- 
berries. These are dwarf, many-stemmed shrubs, bearing 
flower buds mostly on short spurs from wood two or more 
years old; the young shoots grow mainly from near the base 
of the older ones, which are usually more or less recurved. 
The wood is rather soft, contains a large pith and roots 
freely from cuttings or layers, by which means the varieties 
are propagated. The groselles are very resistant to cold, 
and their cultural range exteilds over the greater part of 
the United States and far northward into Canada. The 



160 Lessons in Fruit Growing. 

following species are more or less cultivated in this 
country: 

(a) The red (and white) currant {Ribes rubrum). 

(b) The black currant {Ribes nigrum). 

(c) The Grand all, Buffalo or Missouri currant {Ribes 
aureum). 

(d) The American gooseberry {Ribes oxyacanthoides). 

(e) The English gooseberry {Ribes Grossularia). 

233. Soil and culture. While the groselles will endure 
neglect better than many other fruits, they respond liber- 
ally to good culture. They thrive best in a deep, rich, 
moist soil, and with liberal tillage or mulching. 

234. Planting. The groselles are commonly grown at 
about the same distances as the bramble fruits. The goose- 
berries and the smaller-growing currants may be planted 
3 by 6 feet; the larger-growing currants should not be 
planted nearer than 4 by T feet. 

235. Pruning. The only pruning needed by the groselles 
is the cutting out of the oldest stems and the thinning of 
the young stems when needed. The older stems tend to 
droop and thus to interfere with cultivation and to bring 
the fruit too near the ground. Four or six young shoots 
are usually suflBcient for one plant. 

A — THE CURE ANTS 

236. The currants. The fruit of the currants is chiefly 
used for jelly and preserves. All of the cultivated species 
fruit chiefly on short spurs from two-year-old or older wood 
(Fig. 16). All are readily propagated by cuttings of the new 
or older wood, planted in autumn or early spring. The cen- 
tral buds of the cuttings are often rubbed off before plant- 
ing to prevent more than two or three shoots from growing. 



The Small Fruits. 



161 



The currants may also be readily propagated by layering 
the branches, which will root the first season if covered in 
spring or early summer. 

The red and white currant, of which there are several 
varieties of each color, is the only 
one grown commercially in Amer- 
ica to a large extent, the black cur- 
rants having not become popular 
in this country. 

The currants are so easily propa- 
gated, and fruit so young and so 
profusely, that the market for the 
fruit is readily overstocked. The 
crop may be left oh the bushes a 
long time after maturity, however, 
which enables proportionally' more 
of the fruit to be sold than of 
shorter-lived fruits. 

23t, Parasitic enemies. The 
currant, despite its hardiness, is 
harassed by several parasites that 
render the plants nearly useless 
Fia 46. ivuitmg wood of red ^^^^^^ controlled by prompt treat- 

currant. S S, spurs. '' ^ '^ 

ments. 
238. The imported currant worm {Nematus ventricosus) 
attacks the foliage of the red and white currants soon after 
it expands in spring and usually defoliates the bushes if 
neglected. The eggs are commonly laid on the lower 
leaves near the center of the plant, and the young larvae, 
which at first eat small holes through the leaves, are often 
unnoticed unless specially looked for. The larvae are 
whitish at first, but soon become green, and later are 
11 




162 



Lessons in Fruit Oroioing. 



spotted with black, changing to green again before pupat- 
ing (Fig. 47). Two or more broods appear each season. 
Treatment. Spraying the affected leaves with water 
containing powdered white hellebore, at the rate of an 




Fig. 47. Currant foliage attacked by imported currant worm. (After Saunders.) 

ounce to three gallons, effectually destroys the currant 
worm without poisoning the fruit. The spraying should 
be repeated as often as the larvae appear. An arsenite may 
be substituted for the first spraying if this is made immedi- 
ately after the setting of the fruit. 

239. The imported currant borer {Sesia tipuUformis) 
burrows in the pith of the red and white currants. The 
eggs are laid in the spring, usually near the buds, and the 
larv0e eat their way to the pith, burrowing up or down the 
stem, until June of the following year. 

Treatment. Spraying the stems liberally, just as the 
leaves are expanding, with water containing Paris green 
will destroy many of the larvae. Infested stems are easily 
detected in spring by their pale-colored foliage, which ex- 



The Small Fi'uits. 163 

pands later than that of healthy stems. All such weak 
stems should be promptly cut and burned to destroy the 
larvae within them. 

240. The four-lined leaf-bug: {Poedlocapsus Uneatus) at- 
tacks the leaves at the tips of the shoots during June and 
July, sucking out their juices. The bugs may be jarred 
from the bushes early in the morning, into a pan contain- 
ing kerosene. The young insects may be destroyed by 
dilute kerosene (about ten per cent, in strength). 

241. The leaf spot or rust [SeptoHa Ribis) affects all of 
the groselles, appearing in early summer as small, broAvn 
spots upon the foliage. In case of severe attack, the plants 
may become defoliated during the latter part of summer. 

Treatment. To prevent this disease, the plants may be 
sprayed in early summer with the ammoniacal solution of 
copper carbonate, to be followed after the fruit is harvested 
with a copious spraying of Bordeaux mixture. 

Plant lice (53) often attack the foliage of the groselles. 
On the red currant these often cause the foliage to blister 
and red spots sometimes form on the upper surface of the 
leaves. The lice are often difficult to destroy, but spraying 
with dilute kerosene is perhaps the most satisfactory treat- 
ment. 

242. The black currant [Rihes nigrum) is more vigorous 
in habit than the red currant, and less subject to damage 
from insects and diseases. The foliage has a peculiar, pun- 
gent odor, and the fruit is acid and aromatic; though es- 
teemed by some people, it is not generally popular. 

243. The Crandall currant {Rihes aureum) is cultivated 
to a slight extent for its large, glossy, bluish-black, rather 
mild fruits, which are esteemed by some for jelly and 



164: Lessons in Fruit Growing, 

sauce. The best strains of this fruit are remarkably pro- 
ductive. The bush is the largest of the cultivated currants. 

B — THE GOOSEBERRIES 

244. The gfOOSeberries are more dv^arfed and more slen- 
der-stemmed than the currants, and are commonly some- 
what thorny. The fruit is largely produced on wood of 
the preceding season, and less on spurs than in the cur- 
rant. The varieties of the European gooseberry are little 
grown in this country'-, owing to their susceptibility to dis- 
ease, but the native varieties are comparatively hardy and 
are considerably cultivated. The fruit is generally used 
immature for sauces, canning and preserving. 

245. Propagation. The gooseberries are less readily 
propagated by cuttings than the currants, but are easily 
propagated by mound-layering. The new growth, if covered 
after it is several inches long, commonly roots by autumn. 
The shoots may then be taken up and cut apart, retaining 
a piece of the rooted main branch, and planted as directed 
•for currant cuttings (236). They should form good plants 
by the following autumn. The slower-rooting varieties 
may be encouraged to root by breaking the bark slightly 
at the time of covering the stems. 

246. Pruningf. In addition to the pruning recommended 
for the groselles (235), the size of the fruit may be increased 
by cutting off one-third to one-half of the new growth just 
before the leaves start in spring. 

24t. Insects and diseases. The gooseberry is more sub- 
ject to damage from the imported currant worm than the 
red currant, and the treatment recommended for the latter 
(239) should be carefully observed. 



The Small Fruits. 165 

248. The gooseberry mildew {Sphcerotheca Mors-uvm) 
attacks the young foliage and fruits, causing tlie leaves to 
shrivel, and forming a cobweb-like covering over tlieni. 
Later, the affected parts become whitish, as if sprinkled 
with a white powder. The diseased shoots often branch 
freely, and affected berries generally drop before maturity. 
The European varieties are most affected. 

Treatment. This disease, being a surface fungus, is read- 
ily prevented by timely applications. The bushesm ay be 
sprayed early with Bordeaux mixture, but as the fruit 
forms, a colorless fungicide should be substituted. Weekly 
applications of a solution of potassium sulfide (liver of 
sulfur), at the rate of half an ounce to one gallon, have 
given excellent results. Dissolve the sulfide in a little 
hot (not boiling) water, adding the solution to the larger 
quantity of water. 

Section 3 — The Strawberry 

249. The strawberry is regarded as one of the most de- 
licious of temperate fruits. As its low habit enables it to 
be readily protected in winter, it may be grown in colder 
climates than most other fruits. Its cultural range ex- 
tends over all of the cultivated parts of the United States 
and Canada. It comes into bearing sooner after planting 
than any other perennial fruit plant, and since its adop- 
tion into culture it has always been popular with the am- 
ateur. 

The strawberries now cultivated nearly all belong to the 
species Fragaria Chiloensis., var. ananassa. This species 
inclines to be more or less dioecious, i. e., to produce the 
stamens and pistils on different plants, rather than in the 
same flower, hence the garden varieties, which come from 
seedling plants, often bear imperfect flowers. 



166 Lessons in Fruit Growing, 

The fruit of the strawberry is the expanded receptacle of 
the flower, and bears the seeds upon its surface in more 
or less marked depressions. 

The roots of the strawberry spread laterally little farther 
than the leaves and commonly grow shallow in the soil,, 
hence the plant is very liable to suffer from drought in 
summer. 

250. Growth and fruiting: habit. The strawberry com- 
monly multiplies from trailing runners, Avhich are slender 
branches proceeding from the axillary buds of the parent 
plant that are formed early in the season. Some of the 
later axillary buds do not form runners, but develop into 
branches of the main stem, while those formed still later, 
together with the terminal bud, become flower buds which 
live over winter and expand early the following season.. 
The runners grow throughout the summer, rooting at the 
nodes, and the young plants thus formed commonly de- 
velop flower buds the same year. The following spring, 
the branches of the main stem above mentioned, develop 
leaves and runners, and later, other branches and flower 
buds, and thus the life of the plant is continued from year 
to year. The very short stem of the strawberry plant is a 
rhizome of the class known as caudex, which develops 
largely under ground and which roots at the nodes, the 
older roots dying as the stem elongates. It follows that 
the stem tends year by year to project itself above the sur- 
face of the ground. This probably limits the life of the 
plant, as new roots develop only from the younger nodes. 
The plant tends to lose vigor as it increases in age, because 
the roots continually become shallower in the soil, while 
the flower buds are more and more exposed to the weather. 

251. Soil. The strawberry thrives on any soil capable 
of yielding good farm crops, providing it is well fertilized 



The Small Fruits. 167 

and in a state of thorough cultivation. Varieties vary 
greatly in their adaptation to different soils. 

252. Planting with reference to pollination. Since many 
varieties of the strawberry are more or less dioecious (250), 
and since many of the most valuable sorts produce little or 
no pollen, it is important to provide for the pollination of 
dioecious (imperfect-flowered) varieties by planting with 
them a certain proportion of oue or more perfect-flowered 
kinds. In culture, the dioecious sorts are commonly known 
as pistillates^ and the perfect-flowered sorts used to supply the 
pistillates with pollen are called pollenizers^ staminates, or 
fertilizers. As a rule, one row of the pollen-bearing va- 
riety is planted to each 3 or 4 of the pistillate sort.' Pollen- 
izers should be selected that bloom as early as, and continue 
to bloom as late as, the pistillate variety with which tliey 
are grown. 

253. Culture. Strawberry culture is necessarily some- 
what expensive, as the low growth of the plants renders 
them very subject to damage from weeds. Whatever sys- 
tem of culture is practiced, a clean soil and frequent culti- 
vation and weeding are essential to the highest success. 

Planting. Strawberry plantations are sometimes made 
in late summer or daring autumn, but more commonly in 
spring. Summer- or autumn-set plants do not make suffi- 
cient growth to form many runners or fruit-buds before 
winter, and hence yield but a small crop of fruit the fol- 
lowing season. The soil about them becomes compacted 
during winter, hence the growth of the plants is more or 
less restricted the next season. Only young plants from 
young and healthy plantations should be used. Such 
plants have white roots. The plants are commonly set 
about 2 feet apart in rows 3^ to 4 feet apart. 



168 Lessons in Fruit Growing. 

The matted-row system. Since the strawberry plant 
multiplies without assistance, and the young plants are 
formed near the parent, it is most conveniently cultivated 
in narrow beds (matted rows), leaving spaces 1 to 2 feet 
wide between the beds for cultivation and to serve as paths 
for gathering the fruit. As the plants rapidly lose vigor 
with advancing age, they are commonly permitted to re- 
new themselves more or less completely each season. This 
is accomplished by removing the larger part of the plants 
in the matted beds after fruiting, and permitting runners 
from those left to refill the bed with young plants for 
fruiting the following year. Before this is done, the bed 
is often mowed over, and the cut-off material dried and 
burned between the rows. The spaces between the matted 
rows are kept well cultivated to conserve moisture and are 
mulched during the fruiting season to keep the fruit clean. 
The amount of thinning given the plants after fruiting 
should depend upon the vigor of the variety. The more 
vigorous varieties, as Warfield, on good soil, will furnish 
abundance of young plants if a row only 6 or 8 inches 
wide is left in the center of the matted bed, and if the 
plants in this row are fully one-half removed. The matted 
rows may be narrowed by turning a shallow furrow from 
each side, with a plow having a sharp, revolving coulter. 
The soil overturned may then be worked down level by a 
cultivator having narrow teeth. In small strawberry beds, 
the rows may be narrowed with the spade. 

If the plantation does not suffer from lack of moisture, 
the young plants are likely to grow too thickly, in which 
case they should be thinned out late in autumn or early 
the following spring. As a rule, plants should not be 
permitted to stand less than 4 to 6 inches from each other. 



The Small Fruits. 1G9 

The hill system. The runners of strawberry plants are 
sometimes removed as they form, thus causing the plants 
to remain single or in " hills." 

Plants thus pruned form large, manj'-branched rhizomes, 
which produce more fruit than individual plants that are 
permitted to form runners. But the aggregate yield from 
plantations thus grown is usually less than from matted 
rows. The fruits are, however, often superior in size and 
quality. This method of culture is little practiced except 
by amateurs. 

Duration of the plantation. More than two crops of 
fruit are seldom taken from a strawberry plantation. Many 
growers take but one. While the plants renew themselves, 
and thus make it possible to continue the plantation in- 
definitely, the labor required to keep out weeds is so great 
that it is commonly regarded wise to renew the plantation 
on other ground once in two or three years. 

254. Winter protection is essential to the highest success 
in strawberrj^ culture in climates where much freezing oc- 
curs in winter. A thin covering (one or two inches) of 
clean straw, marsh hay, leaves, or some other litter that is 
free from weed seeds should be applied before hard freezing 
in autumn. This covering tends to retain frost in the 
ground in spring, and thus retards the growth of the plants 
somewhat, unless promptly removed. It is often left on 
for a time to hold back the growth of the plants, and thus 
to retard the ripening of the fruit. 

255. Protection from frost. The low habit of the straw- 
berry plant renders it possible to protect the blossoms from 
frost to a greater degree than is practicable with the taller- 
growing fruits. A light covering of the litter used for 
winter protection, applied on the eve when frost is ex- 



170 Lessons in Fruit Growing . 

pected, is often successful in preventing damage from this 
cause. 

256, Harvesting:. The fruit of the strawberry is soft and 
perishable, hence especial care is necessary in handling it 
(16) (212). The fruit colors well in the package if picked 
slightly immature. 

2^X. Insects and diseases. The strawb&rry leaf-roller 
{Plioxopteris comptana) Iajs its eggs upon the leaves of the 
strawberry in early spring. The larvae feed upon the foli- 
age and mature in June, causing the leaflets to roll upward^ 
inclosing the insects. There are two broods in a season 
in the northern states. 

Treatment. After the fruiting season, mow over the- 
strawberry plantation, cutting off all foliage within an inch 
or two of the soil. When the cut-off herbage is sufficiently 
drj'', rake it between the rows and burn it all. Should the 
leaf-roller be troublesome in the young plantation, spra}^ 
the plants in the latter part of summer with water con- 
taining Paris green at the rate of one pound to two hun- 
dred gallons. 

258. The strawberry root-borer {Anarsia lineatella) is- 
sometimes very injurious to strawberry plantations. It is 
a reddish-pink caterpillar, nearly half an inch long, which 
eats irregular channels through the crown of the plant. 
The moth, which is the perfect form of this insect, lays its 
eggs on the crown of the plant, rather late in summer, and 
the larva burrows into the heart of the plant, where it re- 
mains during the winter, escaping earl}'" in June. For 
treatment see (260). 

259. The strawberry crown-borer {TylodermafragaricB\ 
a small beetle belonging to the curculio family, deposits it& 
eggs about the crown of the plant early in summer. The 



The Small Fruits. 171 

larva feeds within the crown until full grown, when it is 
about one-fifth inch long. It is then white, with a horny, 
yellow head. It transforms within the plant, the beetle 
escaping late in suramer. Infested plants soon perish. Old 
beds are more liable to attack than young ones. For treat- 
ment see (260). 

260. The may beetle. The larva of this insect {Lachnos- 
terna fusca), commonly known as the white grub, often 
attacks the roots of strawberry plants late in summer, 
especially when the plantation was made upon inverted- 
sod ground, and sometimes proves very destructive. 

Treatment. The only known way of combating the 
strawberry root-borer, crown-borer and white grub is to 
dig out all infested plants and destro}^ the larvse within or 
about them, 

261. The Strawberry saw-fly {EmpUtus maculatus) is 
sometimes very destructive, in its larval stage, to the leaves 
of the strawberry. The eggs are laid in the stem of the 
leaf early in May, and the larvse feed upon the leaves until 
mature, when they are pale green, with a faint, whitish 
bloom, and nearly three-fourths of an inch long. 

Treatment. The foliage may be sprayed, before the fruit 
matures, with water containing hellebore powder at the 
rate of an ounce to three gallons. Cutting and burning 
the foliage, as recommended for the leaf -roller (258), will 
destroy many of the larvae. 

262. Thrips. A minute insect [Euthrips tritici) some- 
times destroys blossoms of the strawberry by feeding on 
the stamens and pistils. No preventive for it is known. 

263. The strawberry leaf-blight, also called rust and 
simhurn [Sphcerella Fragarice), attacks the foliage of straw- 
berries during the growing season, often becoming serious 



172 Lessons in Fruit Growing. 

late in Slimmer and during autumn — especiall}'- on plan- 
tations more than one year old. The first symptom is the 
formation of small, purple spots, which increase in size to 
an eighth or a quarter of an inch in diameter. The purple 
color soon changes to clear, reddish-brown, which becomes 
still lighter as the season advances. The edges of the 
spots, however, generally remain purple. The fungus passes 
the winter by a mycelium contained within the leaves, as 
well as by spores. 

Treatment. Burning the foliage after the fruiting sea- 
son, as recommended for the strawberry leaf-roller (257), 
generally prevents serious damage from this disease. 
• 264. The strawberry mildew {Sphcerotheca castagnei) 
attacks both the berries and the leaves, covering them with 
a thin net of mycelium resembling delicate cobwebs. The 
afPected leaves fold up on the midrib and appear as if suf- 
fering from want of water. The disease is thought to be 
most serious on poorly-drained ground. 

Treatment. Sprinkle flowers of sulfur upon the foliage 
and between the plants as soon as the symptoms appear; 
or spray unfruiting plants with Bordeaux mixture. 

SUMMAET OF THE TWO PRECEDUSTG SECTIONS 

1. The groselles include the currants and gooseberries. 
While these are very hardy shrubs, they respond liberally 
to good treatment, and thrive best in a deep, rich, moist 
soil, with thorough tillage or mulching (232, 233). 

2. The groselles may be planted at the same distances 
as the bramble fruits (234). They are pruned by thinning 
out the older branches (235). 

3. The currants are chiefly used for jelly and preserves. 
They are propagated from cuttings, which may be planted 



The Small Fruits. 173 

in tlie open ground. The market for currants is easily- 
overstocked (236). 

4. The imported currant worm is readily controlled by 
spraying with water containing hellebore powder in sus- 
pension (238). The currant borer may be held in check 
by spraying the stems with water containing Paris green, 
and by cutting and burning infested stems (239). 

5. The leaf spot of the groselles may be prevented by 
timely sprayings with ammoniacal copper carbonate or 
Bordeaux mixture (242). 

6. The fruit of the gooseberry is generally used imma- 
ture, for sauces, canning and preserving (244). 

7. The gooseberry is commonly propagated by mound 
layering (245). 

8. The gooseberry mildew may be prevented by spraying 
with Bordeaux mixture or a solution of potassium sulfide 
(248). 

9. The strawberry plant comes sooner into bearing and 
is cultivated over a wider range than most other fruit 
plants (249). 

10. The strawberry plant multiplies itself from runners 
which root at the nodes. The stem tends, year by year, to 
project itself above the ground, making the roots shallower 
in the soil and exposing the flower-buds more to the 
weather (250). 

11. The flowers of many varieties of the strawberry bear 
little or no pollen; such varieties are fruitful only when 
grown near others that yield abundant pollen (252). 

12. The strawberry is commonly cultivated in narrow 
beds (matted rows). The plants are mostly renewed each 
season by narrowing the matted rows after fruiting. The 
spaces between the rows should be well cultivated, except 



174: Lessons m Fruit Growing. 

during the fruiting season, when tliey are commonly 
mulched. New plantations are usually made in spring 
((253). 

13. Winter protection is essential to the highest success 
in strawberry culture, where much freezing occurs in win- 
ter (254). Protection from frost during the growing season 
may be given by covering the plants with litter (255). 

14. The strawberry leaf-roller and the strawberry leaf- 
blight may be held in check by mowing over the planta- 
tion after the fruiting season and burning the cut-off foli- 
:age (257-263). The root-borer, the crown-borer and the 
may beetle are combated by digging out infested plants 
and destroying the larvse (258-260). 

15. The strawberry saw-fly may be destroyed by spray- 
ing the foliage with water containing hellebore powder 
(261). The strawberry mildew may be held in check by 
sprinkling flowers of sulfur upon the foliage and between 
the plants, or by spraying with Bordeaux mixture (264). 

SUGGESTIOlSrS FOR LABORATORY WORK 

1. Practice propagating the currant by layers and cut- 
tings, and the gooseberry by mound-layering. 

2. Study the stems of the currant and gooseberry while 
in flower or while bearing fruit, to ascertain the fruiting 
parts. 

3. Study the insects and diseases affecting the currant 
and gooseberry from the growing plants, and apply the 
remedies therefor. 

4. Study the characteristics of different species and va- 
rieties of the currant and gooseberry from living plants. 

5. Study the morphology of the strawberry plant by 
washing out and examining plants of different ages. 



The Small Fruits. 175 

6. Study in the plantation the insects and diseases af- 
fecting the strawberry plant. 

7. Practice picking and packing the fruit of the straw- 
berry. 

Section 4- — The Cranherry 

265. The cranberry differs from other temperate fruit 
plants in being partially aquatic in habit. In its wild 
state it thrives best in peat marshes so located that they 
are submerged during the freezing part of the year, and in 
which the water level lowers to a foot or two below the 
soil surface during the warm season. If the water contains 
lime in solution, the plants are rarely permanently pro- 
ductive. In culture, the cranberry can only be grown 
successfully Avhen its environment is very smiilar to that 
which surrounds the productive wild marshes. 

But one species of the cranberry has been cultivated to 
any large extent, viz., the large or American cranberry 
{Vaccinimn macrocarpon). This species is native from 
Virginia northward, and westward to Wisconsin. The 
plant is creeping, with slender, scarcely-rwoody stems 
bearing small evergreen leaves. 

266. Fruiting habit. The flowers are borne on slender 
shoots that grow from wood of the preceding year. The 
flower-buds form in autumn, mostly in the terminal buds 
-of these shoots, but the latter grow on the next season, so 
that the flowers become axillary as in the grape. The 
fruit ripens in autumn, and, in some varieties, keeps until 
spring. 

26?'. Cultural range. The cranberry is chiefly culti- 
vated in Northern United States and Canada, and since its 



176 Lessons in Fruit Groioing. 

successful culture is limited to soft-water marslies, it can 
hardly become extensively grown as compared with our 
other cultivated fruits. It is at present most grown on 
the peninsula of Cape Cod, in parts of New Jersey, Maine 
and Wisconsin, and in Nova Scotia. 

268. Culture. The h ighest successin cranberry culture re- 
quires not only the proper soil with abundance of soft water, 
but the power to control the water supply at all seasons of 
the year. The ability to drain the plantation during the 
growing season so that the water level is a few inches below 
the surface of the soil is,however, of greater importance than 
the power to flood it at will. 

The culture of cranberries is carried on under two meth- 
ods, viz., on improved wild marshes and on artificially 
planted ones. 

269. Improving: wild marshes. This consists chiefly in 
clearing the ground that already produces wild cranberries, 
of trees, logs, bushes and other rubbish, in draining it more 
or less thoroughly, and in providing certain facilities for 
controlling the water. The draining should be performed 
gradually. It is cranberry culture in its simplest form, 
and the improvements are carried to a greater or less ex- 
tent according as the work proves profitable. The fruit 
produced on wild marshes is rarely uniform as to size or 
keeping quality, and hence is not usually as valuable as 
that produced on the better planted marshes. 

270. Selecting: ground for the cranberry. Grounds suit- 
able to cranberry culture are generally subject to frost, and 
hence should be selected with especial reference to cold-air 
drainage. 

Only alluvial or mucky soils that are free from clay or 
loam are adapted to the cranberry. An equal mixture of 



The Small Fruits. 177 

coarse sand and muck, or a layer of pure muck, with coarse 
sand above or below, is the ideal soil. Pure muck produces 
an excessively rampant growth that is not fruitful. In 
New Jersey and Massachusetts, the muck is commonly 
covered with a layer of coarse sand. 

The cranberry requires moisture always near the surface, 
but this water must not be stagnant. On true cranberry 
ground, the soil rarely becomes dry more than half an 
inch below the surface. 

2tl. Preparing: the marsh for planting:. Drainage first 
requires attention. A main ditch is commonly cut about 
two feet below the surface of the muck layer, wide enough 
to contain so much of the marsh water that the surface 
will not be flooded after heavy rains. The bushes are next 
piled into heaps in a dry time and burned, and it is well if 
the turf also burns. The remaining turf is next cut into 
blocks and removed. These blocks of turf are sometimes 
used for fencing the marsh or for making dams. The 
stumps are then cut off even with the surface of the muck, 
and a sufficient number of branch drains cut through the 
marsh to drain the whole to the depth of 12 to 18 inches. 
The earth removed from the branch drains is commonly 
spread over the surface. Where sanding is practiced, a 
layer of sand is next put on, of a thickness proportional 
to the depth of the muck. When the latter is 1 to 2 feet 
thick, the sand layer should be 2 to 3 inches thick. 

2t2, Planting". The cranbei^ry is propagated from cut-^ 
tings of the young wood, which are planted in place. 
These should be taken from plants that produce freely of 
large, well-colored and good-keeping fruit. To procure 
the cuttings rapidly, the vines from a well-matted marsh 
are often mown off close to the ground with a scythe, and, 
12 



XTS Lessons in Fruit Growing. 

after picking out the coarser stems, the parts suitahle for 
cuttings are cut into pieces 1 to 6 inches long. Sometimes 
the stems are run through a feed cutter. The cuttings may- 
be planted in spring or early summer and in autumn.- 
They are sometimes planted in drills opened with the plow, 
li" to 3 feet apart, but often they are sown evenly over 
the prepared surface of the marsh, which is preferabl}'' cov- 
ered with about an inch of water. Sometimes the cuttings 
are pressed into the moist soil, but where the water layer 
can be maintained, this is not necessary. 

2?'3.,Care after planting. Grass and weeds should be 
kept out of the marsh until the vines are well matted. A 
moist surface should be maintained, but ground water 
should be kept 12 or 18 inches below the surface. Scatter- 
ing vines are sometimes benefited by rolling the marsh. 
Old vines may often be restored to vigor by mowing them 
off in spring, though the first one or two crops thereafter 
will be diminished. The plantation needs little attention 
during the growing season, except to look after the water 
supply and insect attacks. 

2T4, Hooding: at certain times is necessary to insure per- 
manence to the vines, and to protect from insects and frost. 
It is accomplished by damming up the water, causing it to 
rise in the ditches, and suitable dams should be provided 
for this purpose. Bearing plantations should be flooded 
when growth ceases in autumn, and should be kept cov- 
ered with water until the following spring is so well ad- 
vanced that danger from frost is no longer feared. Occa- 
sionally the plants are flooded during the growing season, 
to destroy insects or prevent frost. Many cranberry marshes 
have no facilities for flooding, but on such the crop is quite 
uncertain. 



The Small Fruits. 179 

2<r5. Picking and storing:. The berries are ripe enough 
to gather when the seeds are brown. Picking should com- 
mence as soon as the fruit is well colored, and the fruit 
should be so handled as to prevent bruising. It should 
•only be picked when dry, or if necessarily gathered wet 
should be quickly dried. The later berries that are not 
well colored when picked will improve in color if spread in 
a shaded, airy place. 

Many cranberries are now gathered with an implement 
resembling a rake, the use of which is thought to benefit 
■ old and densely-matted vines, by thinning them out. Ber- 
ries so gathered are run through a machine resembling a 
fanning mill, to free them from foreign matters. 

Different varieties of the cranberry vary greatly in keep- 
ing quality, hence the early and later varieties should not 
be mixed, if the fruit is expected to keep well. Berries 
free from spots and bruises, and of a good keeping sort, 
should keep all winter in a cool cellar. They may be pre- 
served indefinitely by canning, and by placing them in 
stone jugs or crocks, filling the latter with cold water that 
has been previously well boiled, and storing in a cool cel- 
lar, they are said to keep a full year, or even longer. 

Cranberries keep best in boxes sufficiently open to per- 
mit ventilation. They are commonly packed for market 
in barrels. 

216. The black-headed cranberry worm {Elwpohofa vac- 
■ciniana) (the "vine worm" of Massachusetts and the "fire 
worm " of New Jersey), and the yellow-headed cranberry 
worm {Teras vacciniivorana) feed on the foliage, buds and 
young berries during summer, often proving very destruc- 
tive. They are held in check b}^ retaining the water on 
ihe marshes late in the spring, or by drawing it off early 



180 



Lessons in Fruit Growing. 



and tlieu reflowing after tlie eggs liave hatclied. The larvse 
and eggs may also be destroyed by spraying with kerosene 
emulsion. 

2XX. The fruit worm [Acrohasis vaccini) (Fig. 48) is often 
very destructive. The moth appears at the time the ber- 
ries are beginning to form, and deposits eggs, usually in 
the calyx. The larvse 
feed on the fruit until ^'"^ 
September. Spraying 
the plantation as soon 
as the berries are set, 
with water containing 
Paris green at the rate 
of a pound to 200 gal- 
lons, is thought to de- Fis. 48. Cranberry fruit worm, a, berry, 
Stroy the larvse as they showing egg; b, egg from side; c, egg from 
top; d, larva; e, pupa; f, tip of pupa; g, co- 
attempt to enter the coon; h, perfect insect. All enlarged; lines 
fruit. Lighted lamps, indicate natural size. (After Riley.) 

set at night over vessels of water distributed about the 
marsh, are said to destroy many of the moths. 

2lr8. Other harmful insects. The tip ivorm {Cecidomyia 
vaccinii) sometimes destroys the terminal buds, and a scale 
insect {Aspidiotus sp.) which occasionally infests the stems, 
may probably be held in check by kerosene emulsion. 
Grasshoppers and locusts are sometimes troublesome, and 
may be controlled in a measure by keeping turkeys on the 
marshes. 




Section 5 — The Miscellaneous Small Fruits 

279. The species. These include: 

(a) The dwarf cherry {Prunus Besseyii). 

(b) The dwarf juneberry {Amelanchier Canadensis^ var. 
ohlongifolia). 



The Small Frmts. 181 

(c) The buffalo berry {Sheyherdia argentea). 

(d) The goumi {Eleagnus longipes). 

(e) The huckleberry {Gaylussacia). 

(f) The blueberry {Vaccinium). 

With the exception of the goumi, these are all native 
shrubs. None of them are as yet extensively cultivated, 
and they are of interest chiefly for their possibilities of im- 
provement. With the exception of the last two species, 
seedlings of these fruits may be grown as directed for the 
plum (104), and the culture they require is similar to that 
•of the groselles (233-235). All are hardy throughout the 
United States and Southern Canada, except the goumi, 

280. The dwarf cherry. Several species of dwarf cherry 
a,re native to the United States, but the only one cultivated 
to any extent is the so-called dwarf Rocky Mountain cherry, 
{Primus Besseijii). This is a rather spreading, few-stemmed 
shrub, commonly growing about four feet high. The fruit, 
which is somewhat heart-shaped, is about three-fourths 
inch in longest diameter. It is black when ripe, slightly 
sweet, sometimes a little astringent, and ripens in August 
and September. The plants are very fruitful, and are orna- 
mental while in flower, and also late in autumn, when the 
willow-like leaves assume a rich scarlet color. The plant 
is decidedly variable under culture. 

281. Harmful parasites. The dwarf cherry is subject to 
several fungous diseases. A mildew {Podosphcera oxijcanthce) 
attacks the foliage in summer, giving it a whitish appear- 
ance. Spraying the plants with Bordeaux mixture, or po- 
tassium sulfide solution, would doubtless prevent it, A 
disease similar to the leaf curl of the peach (123) also at- 
tacks this plant, and the fruit-rot fungus (101) sometimes 
causes many of the fruits to decay as they are ripening. 



183 Lessons in Fruit Growing. 

282. The dwarf junefeerry. This fruit is allied botanic- 
ally to the apple. It is extremely variable in the wild 
state, and some of its varieties attain the size of a large 
tree. The form that has been most cultivated (variety 
oblongifolia) is a spreading shrub that commonly grows 
about three feet high. The fruit resembles that of the 
huckleberry in form and size, but is reddish-purple in color. 
It ripens in June and July, is white-fleshed, and has a pleas- 
ant but not strongly-marked flavor. Birds are extremely 
fond of the fruit, which is one of the most serious obstacles- 
to its culture. 

283. The huffalo-berry. This shrub grows 3 to 6 feet 
high, bears narrow, silvery leaves, small, dioecious flowers, 
and scarlet, acid fruit about the size of huckleberries, ripen- 
ing late in summer. It is little cultivated. 

284. The gfoumi is a low shrub, with grayish-green leaves, 
inconspicuous flowers and small, scarlet, gold-speckled fruifc. 
that ripens before midsummer. The fruit is too acid and 
astringent for use in its fresh state, but is prized by some 
for preserves. The plant is not sufiiciently hardy for north- 
ern United States unless protected. Its seedlings are quite 
delicate, and hence are rather diflScult to grow to bearing 
size. 

285. The huckleberry and blueberry. The fruit of sev- 
eral species of the huckleberry and blueberry is rather ex- 
tensively gathered from wild plants in parts of northern 
United States and southern Canada. These fruits do not 
seem adapted to ordinary methods of culture, but they may 
prove amenable to a system resembling that employed for 
the cranberry. Their intrinsic qualities certainly commend 
them for market fruits. 



The Small Fruits. 183 

SUMMARY OF THE TWO PEECEDIN'G SECTION'S 

1. The cranberry is partially aquatic in habit. It thrives 
in peat marshes that are submerged in winter, and in which 
the water is a foot or two below the soil surface during the 
warm season (265). 

2. The cranberry is chiefly cultivated in soft-water 
marshes, and in northern United States and Canada (267). 

3. The highest success in cranberry culture requires the 
proper soil and abundance of soft water, with ability to 
control the water supply at all seasons of the year (268). 

4. V7ild cranberry marshes are sometimes improved with- 
out replanting. The ground is cleared of logs, bushes, 
etc., and provision is made for controlling the water. The 
fruit produced on such marshes is generally inferior in 
quality (269). 

5. Ground for the cranberry should be selected with ref- 
erence to air drainage. Only alluvial or mucky soils, free 
from clay or loam, are adapted. A mixture of coarse sand 
and muck, or a layer of muck with coarse sand above or 
below, is best. The water must not be stagnant (270). 

6. In preparing the marsh for planting, a main ditch is 
dug, about two feet below the surface of the muck layer, 
wide enough to hold the marsh water. The turf is next 
removed, and branch drains are cut through the muck. A 
layer of sand is then often applied (271). 

7. The cranberry is propagated from cuttings of the 
young wood, planted in place, or, where the marsh is 
covered with water, the cuttings may be sown broadcast, 
without other planting (272). 

8. The cranberry marsh needs little attention during 
the growing season except to control the water supply and 
destroy harmful insects (273). 



184: Zessons in Ifruit Growing, 

9. Flooding the cranberry marsh at certain times is 
necessary to maintain health of the vines and prevent 
frost and insect attacks. Bearing plantations should be 
under water from the close of growth in autumn until 
after the frost season in spring (274). 

10. Picking the cranberry should commence when the 
fruit is well colored. Fruit of early and later varieties 
should not be mixed. Cranberries keep best in somewhat 
open boxes (275). 

11. The black-headed and yellow-headed cranberry 
worms are held in check by controlling the water or by 
spraying with kerosene emulsion (276). 

12. The fruit worm is combated by spraying with water 
containing Paris green or by setting lighted lamps over 
vessels of water at night (277). 

SUGGESTIOlJrS FOR LABOEATORT WORK 

1. If a cranberry marsh is sufficiently near, have the 
students visit it and study the methods of culture, includ- 
ing the system of water supply, and the characteristics of 
the plants. 

2. Study as many of the miscellaneous small fruits 
named in section 5 as can be found in the vicinity, and 
make such experiments in their culture as the season per- 
mits. 



The Storage and Preservation of Fruit. 185 
CHAPTER V 

THE STORAGE AND PRESERVATION OF FRUIT 
Section 1 — The Storage of Fruit 

286. Definition and aim of storagfe. More or less time 
generally intervenes between the gathering of fruit and its 
■departure to the market or transportation company. This 
interval may vary in length from a few minutes to several 
■months. The fruit, meanwhile, must he well cared for or 
it will deteriorate more or less rapidly. Storage^ to the 
commercial fruit grower, means the care of the fruit during 
this interval. The storage of fresh fruit is a more com- 
plicated problem than the storage of ordinary merchandise, 
"because fresh fruit tends constantly to undergo changes in 
the direction of decay. The aim of storage is generally to 
liold these changes in check, so far as possible. A knowl- 
edge of the conditions affecting these changes is, therefore, 
(necessary to the proper management of fruit in storage. 

28 <r. The maturity of fruits, i. e., the changes in their 
texture and flavor that render them pleasing and whole- 
some as food, is a step in the direction of decomposition. 
These changes increase in activity, within certain limits, 
as the temperature rises. During these changes most fruits 
give off water rapidly, hence, when confined in packages, 
the air between the fruits tends to become saturated with 
water. Normal fruit does not usually decay until the last 
stage of maturity is reached. 

288. Conditions affecting decay in fruits. The juices of 
fruits furnish most favorable conditions for the rapid de- 
velopment and multiplication of bacteria. The unbroken 



186 Lessons in Fruit Growing. 

skin of fruits, however, tends to prevent tlie access of bac- 
teria or their spores to the juices beneath. It follows that 
the least breakage of the skin of a fruit invites rapid decay. 
Moisture on the skin of a fruit favors the germination of 
the spores of bacteria, and hence promotes decay. A moist 
atmosphere is probably not, in itself, detrimental to the- 
keeping of fruit, but it endangers dampening of the skin. 
A low temperature retards decay because it retards both. 
the ripening of fruit and the multiplication of bacteria. 

289. How to promote the keeping: of fruit. From the 
three preceding paragraphs it is evident that the keeping" 
of fruit is promoted, (a) by gathering the fruit before it is- 
fully mature, (b) by avoiding breakage of the skin, (c) by 
gathering the fruit when it is dry and keeping it dry, and 
(d) by placing it in a temperature low enough to retard its 
maturity and the development of bacteria. 

290. Fruit may become moist in storage. When a pack- 
age of warm fruit is placed in a cool apartment the air be- 
tween the fruits in the package may become so far saturated 
with moisture before the fruit cools to the temperature of 
the room, that a part of its moisture will be condensed 
upon the skin of the fruit. This must happen if the tem- 
perature of the apartment is as low as the dew point 
of the air in the package. The warmer the fruit is, and the- 
cooler the apartment, the greater is the danger of the fruit 
becoming damp. Fruit thus dampened is slow to become 
dry, unless it is removed from the package. Wrapping the 
fruits individuallj'- in absorbent paper tends to prevent the 
injurious condensation of water. 

To prevent fruit from becoming moist in the package^ 
it is probably best to carry it as fast as gathered to a cool, 
dry room, and expose it to the air, in the vessels in which 



The Storage and Preservation of Fruit, 18T 

it was picked, until it becomes as cool as the room. The 
cool temperature will check the passing off of moisture 
from the fruit, and the dry air of the room will absorb the 
moisture as it is given off. Dryness of the air in this room 
may be promoted, if need be, by exposing baskets of un- 
slacked lime. When the fruit has become as cool as the 
room, it may be packed in dry packages, and the packed 
fruit ma}' remain in the room until it is desired to remove 
it. If to be kept some time, it would better be removed to 
a second room in which the air is less dry than in the first 
apartment. 

291. Fruit may become moist when removed from stor- 
age. When a loose package of cold fruit is brought from 
the storage room into a warmer atmosphere, moisture will 
be condensed upon the fruit and the package whenever the 
temperature of the latter is lower than the dew point of 
the atmosphere. The fruit thus becomes damp and warm 
at the same time, which tends to rapid decay. If the pack- 
age is tight, however, this will not occur, because the air 
between the fruits in the package, as it becomes warm, 
will tend to absorb moisture from the fruit, while the 
moisture from the external air will be condensed on the 
outside of the package. 

To prevent fruit from becoming damp when removed 
from cold storage, therefore, it is only necessary to wrap 
the package in impervious cloth until the package and its 
contents become as warm as the external air. This pre- 
caution is, however, seldom taken. 

292. The kind of storage used by the fruit grower will 
of course depend much upon circumstances. As a rule, 
only those fruit growers who are located near a city of suf- 
ficient size to support a commercial cold-storage house will 



188 Lessons in Fruit Growing. 

be able to use artificial refrigeration. Those so located 
may often store their fruit for a time with profit, since the 
storage rates are generally reasonable. Forty cents per 
barrel is commonly charged for storing apples from autumn 
until May 1st, and it seldom happens that fruit does not 
advance in price more than that by March 1st, while a rise 
of^lor even $1.50 per barrel is not infrequent. Some- 
times an arrangement can be made by which the grower 
can take out and sell portions of his fruit from time to 
time, thus dispensing with the services of the middleman. 

293. Only sound fruit will repay cold storage. Only 
fruit that is free from blemishes and somewhat hard when 
packed can be depended upon to keep in cold storage. 
The folly of investing storage charges in bruised, soft, and 
insect-eaten fruit has been demonstrated by many trials. 

294. Co-operative storage houses in fruit-growing dis- 
tricts have been suggested, but they are likely to prove 
satisfactory only when the amount of fruit available is 
sufficiently large to warrant a modern refrigerating equip- 
ment and the services of a competent manager (19). The 
large, city storage-house has advantages due to its loca- 
tion. Fruit can be delivered therefrom to purchasers in 
all kinds of weather, and if on the seaboard, it may be 
withdrawn for shipment at any time. On the other hand, 
fruit necessarily taken from the tree in warm weather can 
be placed in the co-operative storage-house much sooner 
than in the city storage-house. A co-operative storage- 
house in the country may sometimes be combined with a 
creamery storage-house, to the advantage of all concerned. 

Section 2 — The Preservation of Fruits 

295. The preservation of fruit, as here used, means the 
submitting of fresh fruit to some process by which decay 



The Storage and Preservation of Fruit. 189 

is prevented. While the preservation of fruit has no nec- 
essary connection with its production, the fruit grower 
often finds it convenient to employ preservative methods 
for a portion of his products. As competition in fruit 
growing increases, the market demand for the poorer 
grades of fruit is sure to diminish. A certain amount of 
poor fruit is inevitahle, where fruits are grown at all, and 
at certain times the market cannot use all the good fruit 
that is offered. To avoid loss, at such times, the grower 
may be obliged to practice some method of preserving a 
part of his fruits. A few hints upon the preservation of. 
fruits are therefore given. 

296, The methods of preserving: fruits may be referred 
to five, viz: 

(a) Expelling a sufiicient portion of water from the fruit 
{drying or evaporating), so that the bacteria of putrefaction 
are unable to live upon it. 

(b) Boiling the fruit in sealed vessels {canning), which 
destroys the spores of bacteria already in contact with the 
fruit, and shuts out all others. 

(c) Replacing the juice of the fruit with sugar syrup 
{crystallization), which renders the pulp of the fruit un- 
congenial to bacteria or their spores. 

(d) Boiling the fruit with sugar until the juices are suffi- 
ciently concentrated to retard or prevent decay, as in jams, 
marmalades and fruit butters. 

(e) Treating the expressed juice of the fruit to preserva- 
tive methods, as in jelly or unfermented grape juice, or per- 
mitting it to ferment to a greater or less extent, as in cider, 
wine, vinegar, etc. 

All these methods of preserving fruits have become im- 
portant industries in certain sections. In this connection 



190 Lessons in Fruit Growing. 

it is only practicable to state the principles that control 
the different processes. The beginner can hardly master 
any of the methods without experienced aid, but it is im- 
portant that the fruit grower should know the available 
means for preserving his fruits, and sufficient of the prin- 
ciples governing them to enable him to form an intelli- 
gent estimate of the apparatus needed for the different 
processes. 

29 1, Preserving: fruits by drying:. In warm countries 
having a comparatively dry atmosphere, fruit is largely 
dried by direct exposure to solar heat, and, with proper 
care, excellent results are secured by this method. The 
fruit is placed upon tight-bottomed trays made of thin 
lumber, and these are placed on the ground or upon low 
stagings, in a location free as possible from dust. The 
frait is protected from rains and dews by piling the trays 
one upon another, or by covering with cloth or paper. 
Sometimes heavy paper is substituted for wood for the 
bottom of the trays, or sheets of heavy oiled paper are 
used instead of trays. 

In cool climates, the best quality of dried fruit can only 
be secured by the use of artificial heat (evaporation). 

298. Fruit evaporation is a process now extensively used 
for drying fruit. The fruit is spread upon trays having a 
slatted or sieve-like bottom, and is exposed to a current of hot 
air, generated either directly by a furnace, or indirectly by a 
system of steam pipes. The trays are usually arranged one 
^bove another, in a vertical or inclined shaft provided with 
an elevating apparatus by which the trays may be raised 
through the shaft at intervals. The trays containing the 
fresh fruit are inserted at the lower end of the shaft, di- 
rectly over the heat generator, and as each new tray is 



The Storage and Preservation of Fruit. 191 

slipped in, all previously inserted are elevated a short dis- 
tance. By the time the shaft is filled to the top with the 
trays of fruit, those first put in are sufficiently dry to re- 
move. 

• Trays made of galvanized iron are objectionable owing 
to the liability of the zinc to become detached and mingled 
with the fruit. Those made wholly of wood, or with the 
bottom of non-metallic netting, obviate this objection while 
adding the one of combustibility. 

Fruit evaporators are now made of various styles, though 
^iififering chiefly in minor details, and of sizes varying from 
the cook-stove evaporator, intended to dry but a bushel or 
two of fruit per day, to mammoth machines drying hun- 
dreds of bushels in the same time. Apples, peaches and 
raspberries are chiefly evaporated in the east; prunes, plums 
and apricots are extensively evaporated in the Pacific states. 
The finer grades of the larger fruits are evaporated only 
when prices are very low. The smaller evaporators can 
•be operated with profit only where labor is very cheap. 

The superiority of evaporated over sun-dried fruits is 
now generally recognized in the markets of the world. 

Sulfurinci the whiter-fleshed fruits, to prevent discolor- 
■ation of the cut surfaces, is largely practiced both in sun- 
drying and evaporating fruits. The fruit, after having 
been prepared for drying, is treated for a short time to the 
fumes of burning sulfur. This prevents discoloration, and 
in a measure restores the whiteness of parts already dis- 
colored. It is usually performed in a sort of cabinet with- 
out bottom, made of matched lumber, with openings for 
dampers at the top and below, and with a door which in- 
cludes the whole of one side. The cabinet should be of a 
length corresponding to the length of the trays, and of a 



192 Lessons m Fruit Growing. 

width, a little more than that of the trays. Into this cab- 
inet, the trays slide on cleats, as drawers slide into a 
"bureau. Each alternate tray is pushed clear in, thus leav- 
ing a little space next to the door, and the others are 
pushed in only far enough to permit the door to close. 
This makes a zigzag flue for the sulfur fumes, which pasa 
alternately back and forth between the trays. The sulfur 
may be burned in a pit in the ground beneath the cabinet^ 
or in a little furnace outside, the fumes being conducted 
in through a pipe. The dampers mentioned above should 
be opened until the cabinet becomes filled with the fumes, 
and then tightly closed. A convenient method of handling 
the sulfur is to dip strips of cheese cloth or other cheap 
cotton fabric in the melted substance for a moment, and, 
when these are cool, the desired amount may be torn off, 
lighted, and placed in the pit or furnace. The length of 
exposure depends on the kind and condition of the fruit 
and must be learned by experience. It should not be 
longer than is necessary. Thirty minutes may suffice, or 
sixty may be required. 

The sulfuring of fruit has often been condemned on san^ 
itary grounds, but is not likely to be abandoned so long 
as purchasers prefer the sulfured article. Sulfuring before 
drying, and only sufficient to secure bleaching, does not 
render the fruit unwholesome, though it does detract some- 
what from its natural flavor. Sulfuring after drying may, 
however, render the fruit positively unwholesome. Sul- 
fured fruit does not readily absorb water, and, unless first 
soaked for several hours in cool water, does not swell up 
to its normal bulk in cooking, and is comparatively tough 
and indigestible when cooked. 

Prunes are often dipped in a weak boiling lye (one 



The Storage and Preservation of Fruit. 193 

pound concentrated lye to 20 gallons of water), or passed 
through a " pricking •" machine before drying to break the 
skin in many places. These treatments hasten the drying 
and improve the appearance and flavor of the dried prod- 
uct. 

The amount of drying required differs with different 
fruits, and must be learned largely by experience. It is 
neither necessary nor desii'able that all of the water should 
be driven off. The color and feeling of the fruit guides 
the expert. When sufficiently dry, the fruit is removed' 
from the trays, assorted and sifted, if need be, to remove 
dust, etc., when it is placed in boxes or piles for sweating^ 
during which the remaining moisture equalizes through 
the mass. The fruit should be turned occasionally to fa- 
cilitate this process. If packed before sweating, injury 
may result. The fruit is often dipped for a moment in 
boiling water or highly heated a few moments in a close 
chamber before the final packing, to destroy insect eggs 
and render it pliable, after which it is covered in a dark 
room for twenty-four hours. Prunes are commonly glossed 
by dipping them, after drying, in hot water containing 
pure glycerine at the rate of one pound to 20 gallons; 
sometimes they are exposed to steam heat, as a substitute 
for the hot water, 

299. Packing: dried fruits. Dried fruit is commonly 
packed in wood boxes, which are often lined with thin 
paper, and the larger fruits, especially all that are cut into 
sections in preparation, are faced in the package, i. e., 
•the first fruits or sections put into the box are placed in 
Tegular rows, which often overlap one another like the shin- 
gles on a roof. Sections of the stone fruits, as the peach 
and apricot, are usually placed with the stone side down. 
13 



194: Lessons in Fruit Groioing. 

Sometimes tlie sections are first flattened out by running 
tliem through a clothes wringer or a similar pair of rollers. 
After a layer is thus formed over the bottom, a frame of 
the proper dimensions is placed upon the box, to tempo- 
rarily increase its depth, when the amount of fruit the box 
is to contain is poured in, and pressure is applied until the 
bottom can be nailed on. The box is then inverted and 
branded or labeled on the faced side. 

Dried fruit is also sometimes packed in cotton sacks. 
These cost less than boxes, which is perhaps the only ar- 
gument in their favor. 

300. Preserving fruits by canning:. Fruit for canning 
should be of good quality and well ripened. It may be 
placed in the can either before or after boiling. In the 
former case the greater part of the boiling is performed 
before sealing, enough being given after sealing to insure 
the destruction of any spores that may have entered dur- 
ing the sealing process. In the latter case, the cans, hav- 
ing been first treated to boiling water to destroy any ad- 
hering spores, are filled with the boiling-hot fruit, and 
sealed at once. 

Canned fruit can only spoil from imperfect sealing, from 
boiling an insuificient time to destroy all spores of bacteria, 
or from insufficient exposure to heat after sealing. Sugar 
or syrup is not essential to the keeping of canned fruit. In 
point of economy, the sweetening might wisely be de- 
ferred until the time of serving, since a part of the sugar 
is changed to glucose if cooked with the fruit. This de- 
tracts from its sweetening power. Many prefer, however, 
to add the sugar or syrup wholly or in part before? cook- 
ing, as the flavor of the product is thereby improved. 

Alum is sometimes used in canning fruit to prevent 



The Storage and Preservation of Fruit, 195 

breaking down of the pulp — a practice to be empliatically 
condemned on sanitary grounds. 

Fresh cider and grape juice are often preserved by the 
•canning method, either in cans or bottles. Thus prepared 
i;hey are refreshing and wholesome drinks. Bottled fresh 
•grape juice is now a commercial product of considerable 
importance. 

301. Preserving fruits by crystallization. In this pro- 
cess the syrup with which the pulp of the fruit is filled pre- 
vents the development of bacteria, and thus preserves the 
fruit without destroying its form or consistency. The well- 
Tipened fruit is immersed in boiling water long enough to 
■extract the juice without softening the pulp, after which 
it is covered in earthen pans with a syrup of white sugar, 
•of which the density is varied to suit the firmness of the 
fruit, until fermentation reaches a certain sfcage — usually 
about a \reek. The fruit and syrup are then heated to 
boiling, which checks the fermentation, and the fruit is 
left in the syrup for about six weeks, the mass being re- 
heated as often as necessary to stay fermentation. The 
fruit is then removed from the syrup,' washed in clean 
ivater, dipped again in a thick sugar syrup and exposed tp 
the air until the syrup hardens, after which it is ready for 
packing, and will keep well in any climate. Crystallized 
fruits are often called " candied " fruits. 

302. Fruit jams or marmalades are made by boiling the 
fruit in water until thoroughly tender, pressing the pulp 
"through a colander, then adding sugar in quantity depend- 
ing upon the fruit, and again boiling until the desired con- 
■centration is reached. Jams are made from the smaller and 
more tender fruits, as berries, and marmalades from the 
larger and firmer fruits, as the apple, quince, orange, etc. 



196 Lessons in Fruit Groioing. 

Fruit butters resemble marmalades, except that spiceS 
are oftea added. In apple butter, the fruit is stewed in 
boiled cider. 

303. Jellies differ from jams and marmalades in being 
formed from the juice of the fruit instead of the pulp, an4 
hence may be made from imperfect fruit, or from the skins 
and cores. The jellies of commerce are too often grossly 
adulterated. 

Jams, marmalades and jellies, being made rich with 
sugar, keep a considerable time if excluded from the air and 
stored in a cool place. They may be kept indefinitely by 
canning. Special appliances for their manufacture on a 
large scale are on the market. 

304. Cider is the expressed juice of the apple, either fresh 
or partially fermented. Fresh cider soon undergoes fermen- 
tation unless submitted to preservative methods, at first de- 
veloping a small percentage of alcohol (vinous fermenta- 
tion) which later changes to acetic acid (vinegar). Cider is 
used as a beverage and, after boiling to the consistency of 
thin syrup, for fruit sauces, mince pies, etc. It may also 
be made into jelly (303). 

305. Apples suitable for cider. The quality of cider, either 
for drinking or vinegar, depends much upon the propor- 
tion of saccharine matters it contains, and this depends in 
a measure upon the ripeness of the apples used. As a rule, 
the better the apple the better the cider, bat some crabs 
and russets, that are little prized for dessert, make the best 
of cider. Sweet apples are not always superior to sub-acid 
ones for cider; watery and flavorless apples are poorest, 

306. Care of cider apples. Apples intended for cider are 
preferably stored in a dry, airy place, where they will tend 
to ripen, and their juices will tend to evaporate. Flavors 



The Storage and Preservation of Fruit. 19T 

absorbed by apples are likeh^ to be retained in the cider, 
hence apples intended for cider should not be in contact 
with the soil nor with any musty or unclean material. If 
soiled when gathered, they should be washed, and all decay- 
ing fruits should be rejected. 

30t. Manufacture of cider. The apples are reduced to 
pulp in a mill made expressly for the purpose, and the 
juice is expressed from the pulp (pomace) by means of 
heavy screws or levers. Mills and presses are now on the 
market of capacities varjang from the smallest farm mill,, 
operated by hand and producing a single barrel of cider 
per day, to the large power mill that turns out hundreds 
of barrels in the same time. The hand mills are generally 
combined with small presses. They are not economical, 
as their operation requires much labor, and their presses 
extract less of the cider than do the larger presses. 

The pulping machines are of two general classes. In 
one, the fruit is crushed into pulp; in the other it is scraped 
or grated into pulp. Certain French experiments indicate 
that machines of the latter class yield the larger percentage 
of cider. The best machines are said to'extract but about 
60 per cent, of the juice of apples. For pressing, the pulp 
is built up into a " cheese " formed of thin layers, separated 
by layers of straw, or in the more modern mills, the layers 
of pulp are wrapped individually in coarse cloth and sep- 
arated by wood racks. After pressing, the cheese is some- 
times taken down and rebuilt, adding water freely to the 
pomace, and pressed a second time, the product of the sec- 
ond pressing being used for vinegar or jelly. Finally, the 
apple seeds may be washed out of the pomace for sale, and 
the residue applied to the compost heap. Sometimes the 
pomace is broken up into small pieces and planted for the 
product' o" of apple seedlings. 



198 Lessons in Fruit Growing. 

308. Filtration of cider. Cider to be used for drinking- 
should he filtered to remove particles of pulp, skin, seeds,, 
etc., which give it a more or less turbid appearance, and 
hasten fermentation. Large filters, for the rapid filtration 
of cider, are on the market. Those in which the cider passes 
through sand or clay are generally objectionable, as they 
tend to impart an earthy flavor. 

A filter for a small amount of cider may be made as fol- 
lows: bore a half-inch hole through the bottom of a wood 
pail, and into this insert a short wood tube, projecting^ 
downward. Then spread over the bottom of the pail, in- 
side, circular pieces of clean-washed and dried cotton wad- 
ding, cut to fit the pail, until, when pressed down, they 
cover the bottom of the pail to the depth of 3 or 4 inches. 
Cover the wadding with 2 or 3 mches of clean quartz peb- 
bles about the size of a pigeon's egg, to keep it closely 
pressed. When clogged by use, the top layer of wadding 
can be replaced by a new one, or all of the wadding can be 
washed. Cider to be filtered should first be strained through 
a very fine strainer. 

309. Cider vinegar. Dilute alcohol containing the vin- 
egar ferment {Mycoderma aceti), exposed to the air at a 
suitable temperature, changes to acetic acid (vinegar), hence 
cider, after developing alcohol, tends to become vinegar. 
The more thorough the exposure of the cider to the air, and 
the higher temperature, within certain limits, the more 
rapidly does the change take place. About 95° F. is the 
optimum temperature for economical results. Cider should 
have a specific gravity of about 1.04 to make first-class vin- 
egar; that of higher specific gravity may be diluted with 
water or weaker cider; that of lower may be reinforced by 
the addition of crude glucose. 



The Storage and Preservation of Fruit. 199 

Vinegar is often made on the farm by storing barrels 
nearly filled with fresh cider, with their bung open, in the 
cellar from autumn until the following spring, when the 
barrels are removed to an outbuilding or a shaded place in 
the open air. The cider is stirred occasionally by a stick 
inserted through the bunghole. The vinegar develops 
much faster if the barrels are stored during winter in a 
warm room. The acidity of vinegar made in this way 
varies greatly owing to variation in the richness of the cider 
used. Cider from early and watery apples will not make 
strong vinegar. 

310. Rapid generation of vinegar. Slightly fermented 
cider may be changed to vinegar in a few hours by permit- 
ting it to trickle into a tank filled with beech shavings, 
through which air circulates freely. The air is admitted 
through holes in the side of the tank, and the vinegar col- 
lects in the bottom, whence it is syphoned off to another 
vessel. Sometimes corn-cobs are used instead of beech 
shavings. Any material that spreads the. cider out into 
thin sheets and that imparts no flavor to it will answer. 
Special generators for making vinegar by this method are 
on the market, and when carefully managed, they give good 
results. 

311. Wine is the expressed (and generally fermented) 
juice of the grape and certain other fruits. The wines of 
commerce are almost exclusively made from grapes, though 
foreign materials are sometimes added. The manufacture 
of wine is an art quite beyond the scope of a book of this 
sort. Grrape growers sometimes convert all or a portion 
of their crop into wine, disposing of the unfinished prod- 
uct to professional wine makers. A few hints upon the 
first steps of wine-making are therefore given. 



200 . Lessons in Fruit Growing. 

312. Maturity of grapes for wine. The riper grapes are^ 
the more fully is their characteristic flavor developed, and 
the more sugar and the less acid do they contain. Grapes 
free from foxiness ' should be permitted to become fully 
ripe before gathering (208); foxy varieties are preferably 
gathered as soon as they are well colored. 

The evidences of ripeness in grapes are: (a) the browning 
and shriveling of the stems; (b) the shriveling of the berry 
about the stem; (c) the thinness and transparency of the 
skin; (d) the sweetness and honey-like consistency of the 
juice. 

313. The kind of wine made will depend much upon the 
method. Light-colored, smooth wines are made by ex- 
pressing the jaice soon after the mashing of the grapes; 
darker and harsher wines are made by permitting the 
mashed grapes to ferment more or less before pressing. 
White wines cannot, however, be made from grapes with 
dark-colored juice, nor can very dark wines be made from 
white grapes without artificial coloring. An excess of acid 
in the unfermented juice (must) may be corrected by the 
addition of water, and the proper sweetness maybe gained 
by adding sugar. There is, however, a peculiar and delicate 
aroma in wines from perfectly ripened grapes that cannot 
be artificially produced. 

314. The manufacture of wine on a moderate scale re- 
quires less expensive apparatus than the making of cider, 
unless the wine is carried to the later stages of fermenta- 
tion, in which case a special cellar is required. The grapes, 
which should be freed from all unripe or decayed berries, 
and all superfluous stems, are mashed by passing them be- 

' Foxiness is the coarse, sour taste characteristic of some varieties of Amer- 
ican grapes, notably those derived from Vitis labrusca U8B). 



Summary of the Preceding ChajHer. 201 

tween rollers, after which the juice is expressed much as 
in cider making. The power required in mashing and 
pressing grapes is less than in the making of cider. Few 
special appliances are necessary. 

SUMMARY OF THE PRECEDING CHAPTER. 

1. Storage, to the fruit grower, means the care of fruit 
from its gathering to its removal to the market or trans- 
portation company (286). 

2. The maturity of fruit is a step in the direction of 
•decay (287). 

3. Moisture on the skin of fruits in storage, and especially 
breakage of the skin, invite decay (288). 

" 4. The keeping of fruit is promoted by gathering it 
■slightly immature, avoiding injury to the skin, keeping the 
skin dry, and placing the fruit in a low temperature (289). 

5. Fruit may become moist during storage, and on re- 
^moval from storage, unless care is taken to prevent it (290, 
:291). 

6. Commercial cold-storage may often be profitably used 
by the fruit grower, especially for the longer-keeping fruits 
of the best quality (292, 293). 

7. A co-operative storage house is not likely to prove 
satisfactory unless the amount of fruit grown contiguous 
io the house is large (294). 

8. Fruits may be preserved by drying, canning, crystal- 
lization, boiling with sugar, and by expressing and treating 
the juices (296). 

• 9. In warm countries fruits are dried by direct exposure 
to the sun, but better results may be secured by drying 
with artificial heat. The evaporation of fruit by means of 
special apparatus is an important industry in mauy local- 
ities (297, 298). 



202 Lessons in Fruit Growing. 

10. Fruits are canned by cooking them in sealed vessels. 
Canned fruit may spoil from insufficient cooking or fron> 
insufficient heating after sealing (300). 

11. Crj^stailized fruits are prepared by slowly replacing- 
the natural juice with sugar syrup. They keep well in any 
climate (301). 

12. Jams and marmalades are made by boiling the fruit 
with sugar until the juice is sufficiently concentrated to keep 
(302). Jellies are made by boiling the juices with sugar (303)» 

13. The quality of cider depends much upon the rich- 
ness and ripeness of the apples used (305), Cider apples^ 
should be stored where they will absorb no foreign flavors^ 
and should be clean and sound (306). 

14. Cider is made by reducing the apples to pulp in spe- 
cial machines and extracting the juice by heavy pressure 
(307). Cider intended for drinking should be filtered (308). 

15. Cider, on fermentation, develops a small percentage 
of alcohol, which on further fermentation becomes vin- 
egar. Cider should have a specific gravity of about 1.04 
to make first-class vinegar (309). 

16. Commercial wines are the expressed and fermented 
juice of the grape, more or less pure (311). 

17. Grapes continue to develop sugar until fully mature,, 
hence those free from foxiness should be permitted to be- 
come fully ripe, for wine (312). 

18. The kind of wine made depends much upon the 
amount of fermentation permitted in the mashed grapes- 
before pressing (313). 

19. Wine is made by mashing the grapes between rollers, 
and extracting the juice by pressure. Water and sugar 
are often added to the must to regulate the proportion of 
acid and sugar (314). 



Suggestions for Laboratory WorTc, 203 

SIJGGESTIOlifS FOR LABORATORY WORK. 

1. Show the students samples of dried, evaporated and 
crystallized fruits. 

2. So far as practicable, have the students visit places 
where the manufacture of fruits into secondary products 
is being carried on. 

3. Practice such methods, or make sucb experiments in 
the preservation of fruits, as the resources of your institu- 
tion permit. 



304: . Lessons in Fruit Growing, 



CHAPTER VI 

BUSINESS MANAGEMENT OF THE FRUIT PLANTATION 

315. Importance of good Easiness management. Sac- 
cess in commercial fruit growing depends, perhaps, as much 
upon good business management as upon the production 
of good fruit, though this fact has not been generally real- 
ized. 

Important as are the details of routine management, the 
highest responsibility connected with the fruit plantation 
rests on the person who determines its broader policy. The 
best varieties to grow, the best methods of disposing of the 
fruits, the best ways of treating the soil, the best imple- 
ments to use, the best means of catering to the purchaser; 
these and similar questions call for scientific knowledge 
and business ability of the highest order. 

The subjects that may be properly included under the 
routine business management are, in the order of their 
importance: 1st, the marketing of the fruit, 2d, the man- 
agement of labor and 3rd, the procuring of supplies. 

316. Book-keeping. An accurate system of accounts is 
quite as essential to success in commercial fruit growing as 
in other commercial occupations. The books should not 
only show the cash receipts and expenditures, the resources 
andliabilities, and the tirhe of employes, but in many cases 
they should show also the accounts with individual varie- 
ties, orchards and fields. It is only by these means that 
the business can be most wisely directed. 



Business Management of the Fruit Plantation. 205 

Section 1 — The Marketing of Fruit 

Zit, The commercial outlets for fruit. Fruit is com- 
monly sold by the grower through one of three chan- 
nels: (a) To the consumer, (b) to the fruit dealer, and 
(c) through a middleman who receives the fruit from the 
grower and sells ib for a commission (commission mer- 
chant). If the party purchasing or receiving the fruit is 
located sufficiently near the fruit plantation, the fruit may 
be delivered to him by vragon; otherwise it will have to 
be delivered to a transportation company for shipment. 

318. Selling to consumers. The best prices may gener- 
ally be secured by selling directly to the consumer, especially 
if the fruit is choice and the purchaser is able to pay a 
"fancy" price. The amount of fruit that can be sold by 
this method is, however, as a rule, comparatively small, 
and the time required to make the sale and delivery is 
relatively large. The largest outlets for fruits by this 
method are commonly through boarding-houses, restaur- 
ants and hotels, 

319. Selling to dealers. By this method larger quanti- 
ties of fruit may coEumouly be sold for a given effort thau 
by selling to the consumer, but the prices are usually 
lower. Some growers attempt to sell their choicest fruits 
to consumers and those of medium quality to dealers, but 
the two methods are not apt to work well together, as 
dealers usually object to the grower selling his fruit to 
consumers. 

In sections where insufficient fruit is grown to fully 
supply the local demand, a large shipping trade may often 
be developed with dealers in neighboring towns. A list 
of such dealers may be procured through transportation 



206 Zessons i7i Fruit Growing. 

agents; and a circular letter describing the kind, quality 
and prices of stock for sale, with a promise of prompt and 
regular delivery and solicitation for a trial order, may be 
mailed to each. The responsibility of unknown parties 
may be learned through bankers or commercial agencies. 
Purchasers may generally be found who will deal fairly so 
long as the grower performs his part conscientiously'. 

320. Selling to commission merchants. By this method 
"the largest quantities of fruit cau be sold, and with the 
least trouble to the grower, but the prices realized are often 
unsatisfactory. The grower is, in the nature of the case, 
largely at the mercy of the commission man, and often has 
no ready means of knowing to what extent he is fairly 
dealt with. It is unquestionably true, however, that honor- 
able commission merchants are to be found in nearly every 
large city, and it is often the grower s highest policy to 
find these men and to entrust his selling business to them. 
Having found such a merchant, the grower should lean 
much upon his judgment and should obey his directions 
to the letter. Unknown middlemen who solicit trade by 
-circulars and letters, promising prices above the market, 
should always be regarded with suspicion. The "price 
currents" sent out by large commission merchants are 
often helpful, but should not be closely relied upon, as 
they are not always carefully revised and are at best several 
hours old before they reach the grower. The telegraph 
and telephone are better means for securing price quota- 
tions from out-of-town markets. Express and railroad 
agents sometimes find purchasers for goods shipped by their 
lines, but unless paid a commission, they can hardly be ex- 
pected to use much effort to secure highest prices. 

321. Shipping associations. In districts where numer- 
ous persons grow and ship fruit, an association for ship- 



Business Management of the Fruit Plantation. 207 

ping and selling tlie produce is usually advantageous. A 
manager may be employed to devote his time to the in- 
terests of the members. He can ascertain the consuming 
capacity of the towns within profitable shipping distance 
and the transportation rates to each. This will enable 
him to send the proper quantities to each town and thus 
secure better distribution than where each grower ships 
his own products. By shipping in large quantities, ad- 
vantage may often be taken of refrigerator cars and car- 
load rates. Small lots of a given variety, grown by differ- 
ent members of the association, can be grouped, thus 
permitting better prices to be secured for all. The larger 
fruits, as apples, pears and oranges, are sometimes packed 
by the association, thus insuring uniform packing. The 
services of middlemen may sometimes be dispensed with 
by inducing dealers to purchase directly from the associa- 
tion. 

322. Fruits sell largfely by appearance. Too much 
stress can hardly be placed upon the importance of putting 
up fruit for sale in an artistic manner (15, 17). 

323. Printed matter in fruit packages. The use of 
printer's ink as a means of promoting sales, so fully real- 
ized in the mercantile business, seems to be little under- 
stood by fruit growers. A neat card, placed in the fruit 
package where it can be readily displayed by the dealer, 
stating the uses for which that particular variety is spe- 
cially adapted, with recipes for its proper treatment, would 
often promote sales, and would tend to educate consumers 
to discriminate between the qualities of fruits, which would 
lead to their larger consumption. Other methods of 
using printed matter will occur to the thoughtful fruit 
grower. 



208 Wessons in Fruit Growing. 

Section 2. — The Employment and Management of Labor 

324. The object to be attained by labor on the fruit plan- 
tation is the performance of the various necessary opera- 
tions in the proper manner, at the proper time, and at the 
minimum cost. While few of the operations connected 
with fruit growing require special skill, there is a best 
way, and a best time to perform every one. Sufficient 
labor must be employed to accomplish these ends, and the 
supervision of this labor must be such as to insure their 
accomplishment at a minimum cost. The foreman of labor 
on the fruit plantation has therefore a most responsible 
position. 

325. Qualifications of the foreman. The foreman should 
not onl}' know the best time and the best method for per- 
formiug every necessary operation on the fruit plantation, 
but he should have the tact to induce every assistant to- 
perform the work assigned him according to the highest 
standard, and at a reasonabh'' rapid rate. The price re-f 
ceived for strawberries will depend considerably upon the 
stage of ripeness at which they are picked, and the man- 
ner in which they are handled and placed in the package. 
The quality of the peach or plum crop will depend much 
upon the care exercised in thinning the fruit. The fore- 
man's supervision must be continuous and must extend to 
the smallest details. A persistent process of selection must 
be exercised with the assistants, retaining, so far as prac- 
ticable, only the fittest. The wages paid must, of course, 
be sufficient to retain the best. 

326. Organization of labor On large plantations, work 
will often necessarily be going on at more than one place 
at the same time. In such cases, a sub-foreman will be 



Business Management oftlie Fruit Plantation, 209 

needed for each squad, and the most tactful and loyal 
workmen should be selected for such positions. The tastes 
and aptitudes of each individual workman should be care- 
fully observed, and so far as possible each should be de- 
tailed to the kind of work that best suits his tastes and 
abilities. 

32<r. The loyal spirit among: workmen. In any business 
where much labor is employed, the success and economy 
with which the necessary operations are accomplished will 
depend considerably upon the mental attitude of the work- 
men toward their employer. A spirit of loyalty and sym- 
pathy among workmen should be promoted by all avail- 
able means. Strictlj^ fair dealing, reasonable demands and 
prompt recognition of merit tend to this end. Where 
many young persons are employed, an occasional picnic 
or evening entertainment tendered them will do much to 
foster the loj'al spirit. In one case, where a large small- 
fruit business was carried on, and girls and boys were 
chiefly employed for picking, the pickers reported at the 
oflBce at a stated time, formed into line and marched to the 
field to the music of a drum and fife. This is mentioned 
as one means of promoting the loyal spirit. There are 
many others. 

Section 3. — The Procuring of Supplies 

328. The supplies needed on the fruit plantation are 

mostly included under (a) implements and machinery; 

(b) fertilizers; (c) spraying materials; (d) packages, and 

(e) trees, plants and seeds. The cost of these supplies will 

depend considerably upon the location and transportation 

facilities, and upon the methods emplo^'ed by the purchaser. 
14 



^10 Lessons in Fruit Groioing. 

329. Aim to secure wholesale rates both in tlie purchase 
and transportation of supplies.. This often necessitates 
purchasing in large quantities. When the amount of a 
given commodity desired is insufficient to secure wholesale 
prices, aim to make up a club order with other fruit grow- 
ers, or, if possible, order enough of other needed supplies 
of the same party to secure special prices on the whole. So 
far as practicable, have supplies shipped in carload lots. 

330. Invite competition. More or less may generally be 
gained by submitting a list of needed supplies to different 
manufacturers or dealers, for competitive bids. It may not 
always be wise to accept the lowest bid in such cases, but 
the method will insure the opportunity to purchase the 
articles at a reasonable price. 

331. Consider all methods by which the needed supplies 
may be obtained. Sometimes barrels may be purchased 
cheapest by buying the heads, hoops and staves of different 
parties and having the barrels set up on the farm. Some- 
times the local planing mill can lay down the materials 
for crates or boxes cheaper than the regular package manu- 
facturer. Fertilizers may sometimes be obtained cheaper 
in the by-products of local manufacturers than in the regu- 
lar market, or they may be obtained still cheaper by keep- 
ing stock on the farm. The seed for cover crops, or 
mulching materials may perhaps, be raised on the farm 
cheaper than it can be purchased. 

SUMMAKY OF THE PKECEDIlirG CHAPTER. 

1. Success in commercial fruit growing may depend as 
much upon good business management as upon the pro- 
duction of good fruit (315). A thorough system of ac- 
counts should be kept (316). 



Suggestions f 07' Laboratory Work, 211 

2. Fruits are commonly sold to consumers, dealers or 
commission merchants. The first pa}^ best prices, but com- 
monly require only small quantities; the last may use large 
quantities, but the prices received are often unsatisfactory 
(817-320). 

3. Where several persons in the same community are 
engaged in fruit growing, a shipping association is gener- 
ally advantageous (321). 

4. Too much care can hardly be given to the appearance 
■of fruit offered for sale, so long as the article is honestly 
packed (322, 17). Printed matter may often be wisely 
used in the fruit package (323). 

5. The foreman of labor has a most responsible position 
on the fruit plantation (324, 325). 

6. The tastes and aptitudes of each individual workman 
should be considered (326). All reasonable means should 
be used to promote a loyal spirit among workmen (327), 

7. Efforts should be made to secure wholesale rates in 
the purchase and transportation of supplies (329). Com- 
petition should be invited from dealers and manufacturers 
<330). 

8. All methods for procuring supplies should be consid- 
■ered (331). 

SUGGESTIOJfS POR LABORATOEY WORK. 

1. Drill students" in a system of book-keeping suitable 
io a large fruit-growing business. This should include a 
double-entry system, with a concise method of keeping ac- 
counts with different crops. 

2. So far as practicable, give students practice not only 
in the different operations performed on the fruit planta- 
tion, but in the management of squads of labor, the mar- 
keting of fruit and the purchase of supplies. 



212 Lessons in Fruit Growing, 

3. Require each student to submit a short essay on the 
test general system of management to be pursued for a 
given fruit plantation. 



To those who desire to study further the subject of com- 
mercial fruit growing, the following works will be helpful : 
Principles of Fruit GroAving, Bailey^; The Pruning Book, 
Bailey;^ American Fruit Culturist, Thomas^; Plums and 
Plum Culture, Waugh'; The Nut Culturist, Fuller'; The 
Bush Fruits, Card'; Cranberry Culture, Eastman^ and 
White'; American Grape Growing and Wine Making, 
Husmann "'; Harvesting, Storing and Marketing of Fruits, 
Waugh"; The Cider Makers' Hand Book, Trowbridge'; 
The Spraying of Plants, Lodeman'; Insects Injurious to 
Fruits, Saunders *; Cyclopedia of American Horticulture, 
edited by Bailey'; Reports and Bulletins of government 
experiment Stations; Reports, Yearbooks and Bulletins 
of the United States Department of Agriculture; Trans- 
actions of State horticultural societies. 

1 Published by the Macmillan Company, New York. 

* Published by the Orange Judd Company, New York. 

s Published by Wm. Wood & Company, New York. 

•• PubUshed by the J. B. Lippincott Company, Philadelphia. 



INDEX. 



27ie numbeis refer to pages. Headings of sections and subsections are in bold- 
face type. 



Aegeria excitiosa, 95. 

Accounts, keeping with pickers, 149. 

Acrobasis vaccini, 180. 

Aim to secure wholesale rates, 210. 

Almond, the, 119. 

Alternate bearing, 39. 

Amelanchier Canadensis, 180. 

American chestnut, 114. 

American gooseberry, 160. 

American red raspberry, 150. 

Anarsia lineatella, 170. 

Anisopterex, 50. 

Anihonomus quadrigibbiis, 48. 

Anthracnose of bramble fruits, 156. 

Anthracnose of grape, 141 , 143. 

Aphidce on apple trees, 49. 

Apple blight, 58. 

Apple canker, 60. 

Apple curculio, 48. 

Apple, dwarf stocks for, 44. 

Apple-leaf crumpler, 51. 

Apple maggot, 48. 

Apple scab, 58. 

Apple, the, 40, 39. 

Apple-tree borers, 51, 52, 83. 

Apples, in bushel boxes, 62; influence of 
conditions on, 63; picking and pack- 
ing, 61; press for packing, 63; suitable 
for cider, 196. 

Apricot, the, 97. 

Arm of grape, defined, 132. 

Ashes for orchard trees, 33. 

Aspidiotus injuring cranberries, ISO. ' 

Aspidiotus perniciosi.'i, 54. 

Bailey, L. H., quoted, 94. 
Balaninus, 123. 

Bark lice, preventive measures for, 54. 
Bartlett pear self-sterile, 13. 
BigaiTeau cherry, 87. 



Bu-d cherry, 87, 89. 
Bird's-eye rdt of apple, 59. 
Bitter rot of apple, 59. 
Blackberry, 150, 157; duration of plan- 
^tation of, 153; fruiting habit of, 152; 
insects and diseases of, 155; picking 
and packing, 154; planting, 151; prop- 
agation of, 151; pruning, 153: soU 
and culture, 152; trellising. 154; win- 
ter protection of, 154. 
Blackcap raspberry, 150. 
Black currant, 160, 163. 
Black-headed cranberry worm, 179. 
Black knot of stone fruits, 84. 
Black rot of grape, 141. 
Black walnut, 117. 
Bladder plums, 85. 
Blight of apple and pear, 58. 
Blight, leaf, of pear, 73; of quinca, 75. 
Blueberry, 181, 182 
Bone meal for orchard trees, 33. 
Book-keeping, 204. 
Books recommended for further study, 

212. 
Borers in fruit trees, 51, 52, 83. 
Borers in pecan trees, 113. 
Bramble fruits, the, 150. 
Brown rot of grape, 142. 
Bud, the unit of growth, 31. 
Budding the apple, 43, 44; the cherry, 

89; the orange, 103. 
Buffalo berry, 181, 183. 
Buffalo currant, 160. 
Business management of the fruit 

plantation, 204. 
Butters, fruit, 19C. 
Butternut, 117. 

Cacoecia, 50. 

Cane of grape, defined, 133. 



214: 



Index. 



Canker of apple, 60. 

Canker worms, 50. 

Canning fruits, 189, 194. 

Card catalogue of varieties, 11. 

Care of cider apples, 196; of the cran- 
beri-y marsh after planting, 178; of 
young orchard trees, 25. 

Carpocapsa ponionella, 45. 

Carya alba, 114; olivcefonnis, 110. 

Castanea, species of, 114. 

Cecidomyia vaccinii, 180. 

Cecropia moths on apple trees, 50, 51. 

Cercospora circumscissa, 121. 

Cherry, the, 87. 

Cherry, cultivated species of, 87; ma- 
haleb, 89. 

Chestnut, the, 1 14. 

Chickasaw plum, 79. 

Chinkapin, 114. 

Choice of location for fruit growing, 3. 

Chrysohothris femorata, 52. 

Cider, 196; manufacture of, 197. 

Cider vinegar, 198. 

Citrous fruits, the, 101. 

Citrus, species, 101 ; trifoliata, 103. 

Classification of fruits, 17. 

Climax fruit basket, 76. 

Clislocampa Americana, 48. 

Coccotorus scutellaris, 83. 

Codling moth, 45. 

Cceoma luminatum, 156. 

Cold-storage — only sound fruit will re- 
pay, 188. 

Cold-storage houses, 16. 

Commercial fruit growing defined, 1; 
outlook for, 2; what success in de- 
pends on, 2. 

Commercial outlets for fruit, 205. 

Commercial production of nuts, 110. 

Commercial varieties, 7. 

Competition should be invited, 210. 

Conditions affecting decay m fruits, 185 

Conditions affecting fruitf ulness, 12. 

Conotrachelus crataegi, 75; nenuphar, 
81. 

Consider all methods for procuring sup- 
phes, 210. 

Conveniences for picking tree fruits, 34. 



Co-operative storage houses, IBS- 

Coryhis, 121. 

Cover crops, 27, 33. 

Crab apple, 39, 64. 

Cranberry, the, 175. 

Crandall currant, 160, 163. 

Crate for small fruits, 149. 

Cropping orchards, 28. 

Crown grafting the grape, 130. 

Crystallization of fruits, 189, 195. 

Cultivation for stone fruits, 76. 

Cultural range of almond, 119; apple, 
40; apricot, 97; chestnut, 114; cran- 
berry, 175; lemon, 106; orange, 10 i; 
peach, 90; pear, 67; pecan, 111; 
quince, 73; walnut, 117. 

Culture methods for quince, 75. 

Culture of blackberry, 152; bramble 
fruits, 152; cranberry, 176; currant 
and gooseberry, 160; dewberry, 152; 
lemon, 106: raspberry, 152; straw- 
berry, 167. 

Curculio, apple, 48; plum, 81; quince, 
75. 

Curculio catcher, 82. 

Curing the lemon, 106; the walnut, 118. 

Currant borer, 162. 

Currant, pruning, 160; soil for, 160; 
species of, 160. 

Crrrant worm, imported, 161. 

Currants, the, 160. 

Cydonia vulgaris, 39. 

Datana ministra. 51. 

Decay in fruits, conditions affecting, 
185. 

Definition and aim of storage, 185. 

Designation of varieties, 10. 

Dewberry, the, 157; northern, 150; 
fruiting habit of, 152; insects and dis- 
eases of, 155; picking and packing, 
154; planting, 151; propagation of, 
151; pruning, 153; soil and culture, 
152; trellising, 154; winter protection 
of, 154. 

Diastrophus nebulosus, 155. 

Diseases and parasites, 11. 

Diseases affecting the apricot, 98; black- 
berry, 155; cherry, 90; dewberry, 155; 



Index. 



215 



gooseberry, IGJ: grrape, 141; peach 
95; pear, 71; raspberry, 155; straw- 
berry, 170. 

Distance for planting the almond, 120; 
apple, 44; blackberry, 151; chestnut, 
116; currant, 100; dewberry, 151; 
gooseberry, 160; hazel, 123; lemon, 
106; orange, 104; peach, 93; pear, 70; 
pecan, 112; plum, 87; quince, 75; rasp- 
berry, 151; strawberry, 167; walnut, 
118. 

Domestic varieties, 7. 

Doucin stocks for apple, 44. 

Downy mildew of grape, 141, 143. 

Dried fniits, packing, 193. 

Drying fruits, 189, 190. 

Drooping methods of grape training; 
133. 136. 

Drupe fruits, the, 75. 

Duke cherry, 87. 

Duration of plantation of bramble 
fruits, 153; of strawberry, 169. 

Dwarf apples, 44; cherry, 88, 180, 181; 
juneberry, 180, 182; pears, 69; Rocky 
Mountain cherry, 181. 

Dwarf stocks for the apple, 44. 

Education required for fruit-growing, 1. 
Eleagnus longipes, 181. 
Emphytus maculatus, 171. 
Employment and management of 

labor, the, 208. 
English cherry, 87. 
Enghsh gooseberry, 160. 
English walnut, 117. 
Entoniosporium maculatum, 73. 
Erythroneura vitis, 140. 
European chestnut, 114. 
European grape, 126. 
European plum, 77. 
European red raspberry, 150. 
Euthrips triticl, 171. 
Evaporating fruit, 189, 190. 
Exoascus deformans, 96; pruni, 85. 

Fall web-worm, 113. 

Ferment, vinegar, 198. 

FertUizers, how to know if needed, 32. 

Fertilizing of orchards, 32. 



Filtration of cider, 198. 

Fire blight, 58, 72. 

Fire worm of cranberry, 179. 

Flat-headed apple-tree borer, 52, 83. 

Flooding the cranberry marsh, 178. 

Flower-buds of apple, 41. 

Foreman, qualifications of, 208. 

Four-lmed leaf-bug, 163. 

Fragaria Chiloensis, 165. 

Frost, freedom from, what depends 

on, 4. 
Frost grape, 126. 
Frost, protection of strawberries from, 

169. 
Fruit, bearing alternate years, 39; com- 
mercial outlets for, 205; damage to, 
in picking, 14; defined, 1; preserva- 
of, 185; selling to consumers, 205; to 
dealers, 205; to commission mer- 
chants, 206; shipping associations 
for, 207; storage of, 16; thinning, 34; 
when and how should it be picked ? 
14. 
Fruit basket, climax, 76. 
Fruit butters. 196. 

Fruit estabhshments, proximity to, de- 
sirable, 6. 
Fruit evaporation, 190. 
Fruit growing, choice of location for, 
3; commercial, defined, 1; success in 
dependent on selection of varieties, 2, 
7; education required for, 1; locations 
for, outside of normal belt, 5; present 
condition of, 1. 
Fruit jams, 195. 
Fruit juUies, 196. 
Fruit ladders, 35. 
Fruit marmalades, 195. 
Fruit packages, 13; grower's name 
should be put on, 14; printed matter 
in, 207; requisites to good, 13. 
Fruit rot of stone fruits, 83. 
Fruit spurs of apple, 41. 
Fruit worm of cranberry, 180. 
Fruitfulness, conditions affecting, 12. 
Fruiting habit of almond, 120; apple, 
40; apricot, 97; blackberry, 152; 
bramble fruits, 152; cherry, 88; chest- 



216 



Index. 



nut, 115; cranberry, 175; currants, 
160; dewberry, 152; grape, 131; hazel, 
122: orange, 102; peach, 91; pear, 68; 
pecan. 111 : plum, 80; quince, 74; rasp- 
berry, 152; strawberry, 166; walnut, 
117. 

Fruits, canning, 189, 194; classif c ition 
of, 17; conditions affecting decay in, 
185; crystallization of, 189, 195; dry- 
ing or evaporating, 189; grading and 
packing, 15, 36; how to promote keep- 
ing of, 186; kinds of to grow, 3; ma- 
turity of, 185; may become moist in 
storage, 186; may become moist when 
removed from storage, 187; packing 
dried, 193; pome, 39; preservation of, 
185, 188; sell by appearance, 207; 
storage of, 185; sulfuriug, for drying, 
191. 

Fumigating trees for San Jose Scale, 55. 

Fungous diseases of grape, 141. 

Fungous diseases of quince, 75. 

Fusicladium, of apple and pear, 58. 

Gaylussacia, 181. 
General cousiderations, 1. 

Gloeosporium fructigenum, 59; neca- 

tor, 156. 
Gooseberries, the, 164. 
Gooseberry mildew, 165. 
Gooseberry, pruning, 160; soil for, 160; 

species of, 160. 
Goumi, 181, 182. 

Grading and packing fruits, 15, 36. 
Grading of nursery trees, 21. 
Grafting the apple, 43, 44; cherry, 89; 

grape, 129; pear, 69; plum, 86. 
Grape, the, 126. 

Grapes for wine, maturity of, 200. 
Grape-vine leaf- hopper, 140. 
Grapholitha caryana, 113. 
Grass, seeding orchard to, may make 

trees bear, 28. 
Grasshoppers injuring cranberries, 180. 
Gray rot of grape, 14:3. 
Groselles, the, 159. 
Ground for cranberry, selecting, 176. 
Growth habit of strawberry, 106. 



Growth of orchard trees, when com- 
pleted, 26. 

Harmful parasites and diseases, 11. 

Harnesses for orchard work, 29. 

Harvesting the grape, 144; hazel, 123; 
lemon, 106; orange, 105; pecan, 113; 
strawberry, 170; walnut. 118. 

Hazel, the. 121. 

Health and cleanness of nursery 
trees, 21. 

Heart cherry. 87. 

Hickory-shuck worm, 113. 

Hickory twig-girder. 113. 

Hicoria ovata, 114; pecan, 110. 

High or low heading of trees, 29. 

High renewal method of grape train- 
ing, 134. 

Hill system of strawberry culture, 169. 

Houses, cold-storage, 16; packing, 15. 

How shall we know if fertilizers are 
needed, 32. 

How to promote keeping of fruits, 186. 

Huckleberry, 181, 182. 

Hybrid plums, 79. 

Hyphantria cunea, 113. 

Importance of good business manage- 
ment, 204. 

Imported currant borer, 162. 

Imported cui'rant worm, 161. 

Improving wild cranberry marshes, 176. 

Insects affecting the apple, 45; apricot, 
98; blackberry, 155; cherry, 9U; dew- 
berry, 155; gooseberries, 164; grape, 
139: hazel, 123; peach, 95, pear, 71; 
quince, 75; raspberry, 155; straw- 
berry, 170. 

Introduced walnuts, 119. 

Invite competition, 210. 

Jams and marmalades, 195. 

Japanese chestnut, 114. 

Japanese plum, 77. 

" Jarring process " for plum curculio, 

82. 
Jellies, fruit, 196. 
Juglans, species, 117, 119. 



Index. 



217 



Kid-glove oranges, 101, 102. 
Kinds of fruit to grow, 3. 
Kind of tillage for orchards, 28. 
Kniffen system of grape training, 136. 

Labor, available supply of necessary, 6. 
Labor, object attained by, 208. 
Labor, organization of, 209. 
Laboratory work, suggestions for, 19, 

38, 66, 100, 109, 125, 146, 159, 174, 184, 

203, 211. 
Lachnosterna fusca. 171. 
Ladders for picking fruit, 35. 
Layering the grape, 127. 
La3'ing out orchards, 22. 
Leaf blight of pear, 73; of strawberry, 

171. 
Leaf curl of peach, 96. 
Leaf rollers, 50. 

Leaf spot or rust of currant, 163. 
Lemon, the, 106, 101. 
Length of season, as related to fruit 

growing, 4. 
Lime, the, 107, 101. 
"Little peach," 96. 
Locality where planting stock should 

be purchased, 8. 
Location for fruit growing, choice of, 3; 

outside of normal belt, 5. 
Locusts injuring cranberries, 180. 
LoBstadia Bidwellii, 141. 
Loyal spirit among workmen, 209. 

Macrodactylus siibspinosus, 140. 

Mahaieb cherry, 89. 

Marianna plum, 85. 

Market conditions, 4. 

Market, defined, 4 ; may be developed, 5. 

Markets, most profitable not always 
largest places, 6. 

Marketing the cherry, 89; hazel, 133; 
pecan, 113; walnut, 118. 

Marmalades, fruit, 195. 

Mandarin, the, 101, 103. 

Manufacture of cider, 197; wine, 300. 

Manure, available supply of neces- 
sary, 6. 

Maturity of fruits, 185. 

Maturity of grapes for wine, 200. 

Matted-row system of strawberry cul- 
ture, 168. 



May beetle, 171. 
Mazzard cherry, 87 
Methods of preserving fruit, 189. 
Methods of training the grape, 133. 
Micrococcus amylovorus, 58. 
Mildew of gooseberry, 105; of straw- 
berry, 172. 
Miner group of plums, 79. 
Mirabelle plum, 93. 
Miscellaneous bush fruits, 180. 
Missouri currant, 160. 
Monilia fructigena, 83. 
Morello cherry, 87. 
Mycoderma aceti, 198. 
Myrobolan plum, 85. 
Mytilasjyis pomorum, 5.3. 

Nectarine, the, 90. 

Nematus ventricosus, 161. 

Nigra group of plums, 78. 

Northern dewberry, 1.50. 

Northern fox grape, 126. 

Nursery trees, health and cleanness 

of, 21. 
Nnts, the, 109. 
Nut trees alhed to pecan, 118. 

Oberia b:maculafa, 155. 

Object attained by labor, 208. 

CEcanthus niveus, 155. 

Oedemasia concinna, 51. 

Oncideres cingulatus, 113. 

Orange, the, 102. 

Orange, sweet, 101. 

Orange rust of raspberry and black- 
berry, 156. 

Orchards, cropping, 28. 

Orchard culture, general statements, 
30. 

Orchard culture of hazel, 122; of or- 
ange, 104; of walnut, 118. 

Orchard, defined, 30. 

Orchard fruits, grading and pack- 
ing, 36. 

Orchard planting of the peach, 93. 

Orchard sites, 20. 

Orchards, fertilizing of, 32; laying out, 
22; sod in, 28; soil preparation of, 
21 ; soil treatment for, 26. 

Orchard treatment of chestnut, 116. 



218 



Index. 



Orchard trees; bone meal for, 33; care 
of young, 25; completing season's 
growth, 26; planting of, 24; potash 
for, 33; principles of pruning, 30; 
wood ashes for, 33. 

Orchard work, harness for, 29. 

Organization of labor, 209. 

Outlook for commercial fruit grow- 
ing, 2. 

Oyster-shell bark louse, 53. 

Package manufactories, proximity to 

desirable, 6. 
Packages, fruit, 13. 

Packing apples, 61; bramble fruits, 154; 
dried fruits, 193; fruits, 15; grape, 
144; orange, 105; peach, 94; pears, 71; 
small fruits, 148; stone fruits, 76. 
Packing houses, 15; location for, 16. 
Paradise stocks for apple, 44. 
Parasites and diseases, 11 . 
Parasites of apple, 45; of chestnuts, 

116; of orange, 105. 
Parasitic enemies of almond, ISl; of 
dwarf cherry, 181; of pecan, 113; of 
plum, 81. 
Parties from whom to jjurchase plant- 
ing stock, 8. 
Peach, the, 90. 
Peach, growing seedlings of, 92; on 

plum stocks, 93. 
Peach-tree borer, 95. 
Pear, the, 67, 39. 
Pear, Bartlett, self -sterility of, 13. 
Pear bUght, 58. 

Pear, dwarf, 69; grafting the, 69. 
Pear-tree psylla, 71. 
Pear-tree slug, 73. 
Pear scab, 58. 
Pecaji, the, 110. 
Peen-to peach, 90. 
Peronospera viticola, 141. 
Persian walnut, 117. 
Phoxopteris comptana, 170. 
Phylloxera of grape, 139. 
Physis indigenella, 51. 
Pie cherry, 87. 
Picking apples, 61 ; the bramble fruits, 



154; the cherry, 89; the cranberry, 
179; the peach, 94; plums, 80; the 
small fruits, 148; the stone fruits, 76. 
Picking conveniences, 34. 
Planting the ahnond, 120; blackberry, 
151; bramble fruits, 151; cranberry, 
177; dewberry, 151; grape, 130; orange 
in orchard, 104; orchard trees, 24; 
pecan, 112; raspberry, 151; straw- 
berry, 167; procuring stock for, 8. 
Plant lice on apple trees, 49. 
Plowrightia niorbosa, 84. 
Plum, the. 77. 
Plum, black knot of, 84. 
Plum curculio, 81. 
Plum gouger, 83. 
Plum, grafting the, 86. 
Pliim, Marianna, 85. 
Plum pockets, 85. 
Plum, species cultivated in U. S. and 

Canada, 77, 
Plum, stocks for, 85. 
Plum stocks, peaches on, 93. 
Plum, Wild-Goose, 78. 
Plums, hybrid, 79; Nigra group of, 78; 

Miner group of, 79; rotting of, 83. 
Podosphcera oxycanthce. 181. 
Pcecilocapsus lineatus, 163. 
Pollination, planting strawberries for, 

167. 
Pome fruits, the, 39. 
Pomelo, the, 107,101. 
Pomology defined, 1. 
Potash for orchard trees, 33, 
Powdery mildew of grape, 141, 142. 
Preparing the almond for market, 120;. 
chestnuts for market, 116; cranberry 
marshes for planting, 177. 
Present condition of fruit growing, 1 ;. 

of nut culture, 109. 
Preservation of fruit, 185. 
Preserving fruits by canning, 194; by" 

crystallization, 195; by drying, 190. 
Preserving fruit, methods of, 189. 
Press for packing apples, 63. 
Principles of pruning orchard trees, 30. 
Printed matter in fruit packages, 207.- 
Procuring of supplies, the, 209. 



Index. 



219 



Propagation of almond, 120; apple, 43; 
apricot, 98; blackbeny, 151; cherry, 
89; chestnut, 115; currants, 160; dew- 
berry, 151: gooseberry, 164; grape, 
12"; hazel, 122; orange, 103; peach, 
91; pear, 68; pecan, 111; plum, 85; 
quince, 74; raspberry, 151 ; walnut, 118. 

Prospects of nut culture, 109. 

Protecting orange trees from cold, 105. 

Protection of strawberries from frost, 
169. 

Protectors for trees, 25. 

Pruning the almond, 120; apple, 40; 
bramble fruits, 153; cherry, 89; cur- 
rants, 160; gooseberries, 164; grape, 
131; pear, 68; peach, 93; pecan, 113; 
plum, 80; walnut, 118. 

Pruning orchard trees, principles of, 30. 

Pruning, summer, 31. 

Pmnus Americana^ 78, 79, 80; amyg- 
dalis, 119; angustifolia, 79, 85; Ar- 
nieniaca, 97; avium; 87; Besseyii, 88, 
180, 181; cerams, 87, 89; Chicasa, 79; 
domestica, 77; hortulana, 78; maha- 
leb, 89; myrobolana, 85; persica, 90; 
triflora, 77. 

Psylla pyri, 71. 

Pumps for spraying, 12. 

Purple-cane raspberry, 150. 

Pyrus, species of, 39. 

Qualifications of foreman, 208. 

Quince, the, 73, 39. 

Quince curculio, 75. 

Quince, French, as stock for the pear, 
69. 

Quincunx method of laying out or- 
chards, 22. 

Rapid generation of vinegar, 199. 

Raspberry, the, 157; American red, 150; 
blackcap, 150, duration of planta- 
tion, 153; European red, 150; fruiting 
habit of, 152; insects and diseases of, 
155; picking and packing, 154; plant- 
ing, 151 ; propagation of, 151 ; pruning, 
153; purple-cane, 150; soil and cul- 
ture of, 152; treUising, 154; winter pro- 
tection of, 154. 



Raspberry cane-borer, 153, 155. 

Raspberry slug or saw-fly, 155. 

Red cherry, 87. 

Red currant, 160. 

Red-humped apple-tree caterpillar, 51. 

Red rust of raspberry and blackberry, 

156. 
Red spider on almond, 121. 
Ribes, species of, IGO; aureuni, 163; ni- 

grum, 163. 
Rhopodota vacciniana, 179 
Ripe rot of apple, .59. 
Roberts, Prof., quoted, 32. 
Rocky Mountain cherry, 181. 
Roestelia aurantica, 75. 
Root cuttings, propagation of the plum 

from, 86. 
Root-grafting the apple, 44; the grape, 

129. 
Rose beetle, 140. 
Rosette of the peach, 96. 
Round-headed apple-tree borer, 51. 
Rubus, species of, 150; villosus, 157. 
Rust of strawberry, 171. 

Samia on apple trees, 50. 

Sand cherry, 88. 

San Jose Scale, 54. 

Saperda Candida, 51. 

Scab fungus of apple and pear, 58. 

Schizoneura lanigera, 56. 

Season, length of, as related to fruit 

growing, 4. 
Scale insect injuring cranberries, 180. 
Seeding ground to grass may make 

trees bear, 28. 
Seedlings of apple, 43; of peach, 92; of 

pear, 69; of pecan, 112; of plum, 86. 
Selandria cerasi, 72; rubi, 155. 
Selecting ground for cranberry, 176. 
Selection of varieties important, 7. 
Self-steriUty of varieties, 13. 
Selling fruit to commission merchants, 

206; to consumers, 205; to dealers, 205. 
Septoria Ribis, 163. 
Sesia tipuliformis, 162. 
Shagbark hickory, 113. 
Shellbark hickory, 113. 



220 



Index. 



Shelter from prevailing winds, 4. 
Shepherdia argentia, 181. 
Shipping associations for fruit, 207. 
Shipping quality, 5. 
Shoot of grape defined, 132. 
Shot-liole fungus on almond, 121. 
Single-post method of grape training, 

133. 
Sites for orchards, 20. 
Small fruits, the, 148, 
Sod in orchards, 28. 

Soil for almond, 120; apple, 43; black- 
berry, 152; bramble fruits, 1.52; cherry, 
88; chestnuts, 115; currant and goose- 
berry, 160; dewberry, 152; grape, 126; 
hazel, 122; orange, 104; peach, 93; 
pear, 67; pecan, 111; plum, 87; quince, 
75; raspberry, 152; stone fruits, 76; 
strawberry, 166. 
Soil, influence of, on character of ap- 
ples, 64. 
Soil preparation for grape, 130; for 

orchards, 21. 
Soil treatment for orchards, 26; for 

pears, 68. 
Sour cherry, 87. 
Southern fox grape, 126. 
Sphaceloma ampelinum, 141, 
Sphcerella Fragarice, 171. 
Sphosria morbosa, 84. 
Sphoeropsis nialorum, 60. 
Sphcerotheca castagnei, 172; Mors 

uvce, 165. 
Spraying, apparatus needed for, 12. 
Spraying for codling moth, 47. 
Spraying for fruit rot, 84. 
Spraying pumps, 12. 
Spur of grape, defiried, 132. 
Standard fruit tree, defined, 68. 
Stock for planting, parties from whom 
to purchase, 8; procuring, 8; time to 
purchase, 9; locality where should 
be purchased, 8. 
Stocks for the orange, 103; plum, 85. 
Stone or drupe fruits, the, 75. 
Stone fruits, cultivation for, 76; list of 
cultivated, 75; picking and packing 
the, 76; soil for, 70. i 



Storage and preservation of fruit, 

185. 

Storage, fruit may become moist in, 
186; fruit may become moist when 
removed from, 187. 

Storage houses, co-operative, 188. 

Storage, kind of, 187. 

Storage of fruits, 16. 

Storing the cranberry, 179. 

Strawberry, the, 165. 

Strawberry crown-borer, 170; leaf- 
blight, 171; leaf -roller, 170; mildew, 
172; root-borer, 170; rust, 171; saw- 
fly, 171; sunburn, 171. 

Success in commercial fruit growing, 
what it depends on, 2; dependent on 
selection of varieties, 7. 

Suggestions for laboratory work, 19, 
38, 66, 100, 109, 125, 146, 159, 174, 184, 
203, 211. 

SuKuring fruits for drying, 191. 

Summary of chapter I, 18; section 1, 
chap, n, 36; section 2, chap. II, 64; 
pear, quince and stone fruits, 98; 
citrous fruits, 107; nuts, 123; the 
grape, 145; bramble fruits, 158; gro- 
selles and strawberry, 172; cranberry 
and miscellaneous bush fruits, 183; 
chapter V, 201 ; chapter VI, 210. 

Summer grape, 126. 

Summer pruning, 31; the grape, 138. 
Sunburn of strawberry, 171. 
Supplies, methods for procuring, 210; 

needed on fruit plantation, 209. 
Sweet cherry, 87. 
Sweet orange, 101, i02. 

Taphrina pruni, 85, 

Tent caterpillar, 48. 

Teras vacciniivorana, 179, 

Tetranychus telarius, 121. 

Thinning fruit, 34; promotes annual 

bearing, 40. 
Thrips injuring the strawberry, 171. 
Tillage for orchards, 28. 
Time to purchase stock for planting, 9. 
Tip worm of cranberry, 180. 
Tobacco dust for woolly louse, 57. 



Index. 



221 



Training the grape, 131, 133. 

Transportation facilities, 5. 

Transportation, two or more lines of 
important, 5. 

Treatment for anthracnose of grape, 
143; currant borer, 163; cuiTant worm, 
162; downy mildew, 142; gooseberry 
mildew, 165; leaf spot of currant, 163; 
powdery mildew, 143; strawberry 
leaf -roller, 170. 

Tree cricket, 155. 

Tree-frait or orchai-d culture, 20. 

Tree protectors, 25. 

Trees, class and age of, to buy, 20. 

Trees, high or low heading of, 29. 

Trees, nursery, how graded, 21 . 

Trees, orchard, care of young, 25; 
planting of, 24; when growth is com- 
pleted m,- 26. 

Trees, yoimg, preferable, 21. 

Trellising the bramble fruits, 154. 

Trellises for the grape, 138. 

Trial ground essential, 7. 

Triangle method of laying out or- 
chards, 22. 

Trypeta pomonella, 48. 

Tying the grape, 139. 

Tyloderma fraparice, 170. 

Uncinula spiralis, 141. 

Upright methods of grape training, 133. 



Vaccinium rblueherry), 181; macro- 
carpon, 175. 

Varieties, card catalogue of, 11; com- 
mercial and domestic, 7; designa- 
tion of, 10; selection of, important, 
7; self-sterility of, 13. 

Vinegar, cider, 198; rapid generation of , 
199. 

Vine worm of cranberry, 179. 

Vitis, species of, 126. 

Walnut, the. 117. 

When and how should fruit be oicked? 

14. 
White currant, 160. 
Wholesale rates, securing, 210. 
Wild cranberry marshes, improving, 176. 
Wild-goose plum, 78. 
Wind-break, 4, 9. 
Winds, shelter from prevailing, 4. 
Wine, 199; manufacture of, 200. 
Winter grape, 126. 
Winter protection of bramble fruits, 

154; grape, 144; strawberries, 169. 
Woolly aphis of apple, 56. 
Woolly louse of apple, 56. 
Workmen, loyal spirit among, 209. 

Yellow-headed cranberry worm, 179. 
Yellow-necked apple-tree catei-piUar, 

51. 
Yellows of peach, 95. 



\» kO "J 



MAR 7- 1902 

1 tUPV DEL. TO CAT. DiV. 
LIAR. 7 1902 



MAR. 10 1902 



